3 girls, me, and a recipe

Attention! I'm back.......

2011-04-03T20:22:00.000-07:00

I have missed you all tremendously. I miss interacting with my blogging friends and please dont worry, I have been reading all of them! I just havent h
ad the energy to create a new post. It has been one extremely busy and nervewracking year. I am going to avoid ever having to go through such madness ever again! I am just going to jump right in here and tell you the basics. My daughter is happily married as of last June. I have an amazing son in law that I wonder how we ever did without before he came into our lives. Not to mention, how happy he makes my daughter. (Grandbabies soon......? That is our prayer.) We have completed our new home and now we have been putting in a yard. Oh. My. Goodness. ALOT of work. We are preparing now for my parents 50th wedding anniversary party in April. I am an only child so I am doing all the plans. Trust me, I prefer this. It is so nice to do everything myself, it involves no one elses decisions. The year they had their 25th, they were kind of passed over because I was married July of that year. So I decided they needed, no, they deserved this party. I will surely post some pictures. Since I do try to share what I have been cooking in my "brand new super duper exactly what I wanted kitchen" I will leave you with what we are addicted to right now.This is Pioneer Womans Salsa. This tastes better than what you get at the Mexican Restaurants. An it is amazing easy. Go to www.pioneer woman.com and you will find the recipe. Please make it. You wont be sorry. Be back soon, love you all!

What a year!

2010-08-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying their hot, hot summer. So much has happened this year. Its almost a blur. My daughter was married on June 12, 2010. It was probably the most stressful event I have ever been too. As we were getting nearer to the date, and attending showers and parties in celebration of the wedding my emotions were an absolute roller coaster. The day was beautiful and the bride and groom were not nervous and very ready to begin their life together. Although it was extremely hot and it was a garden wedding we couldnt have been happier or more proud. This is a picture of my family complete with our new son-in-law.

Our next big adventure is that we are also building a home, it is gorgeous and I feel like I am in a dream everytime I go inside. It is coming along beautifully. It was not a smart move to be doing both of these major projects at once. Not to mention, we are living in a travel trailer on the property while this home is being built. So we stare at it everyday and anticipate the move so much! I will take pics and show you soon! My kitchen is going to be so much fun I cant stand it. I know my pups will be glad to have a bigger yard to run in. They are not really into this camper livin'. My mind has been full of ideas and dishes and I cant wait to share. Glad to be back and get into a routine again! Missed you all.

Lauren and Travis

2010-02-02T09:41:00.000-08:00

Please forgive me for not blogging more but these two little dolls have been keeping us busy!

We have less than 3 months before the wedding. Its exciting and bittersweet. Although I love Travis so much, she is my baby. My first baby. My mini-me. She will be living close by, thank goodness. I need to be close for when the babies start coming! (Sorry Trav!)

Simple Chocolate Croissants

2010-01-18T08:37:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! Hope everyone had a great weekend! It is finally warming up around here, thank goodness. We are knee deep in wedding plans but its been fun. Last night I had a sweet craving and this is our "go to" recipe for later in the day when you dont want to dirty up the kitchen.I unrolled a can of croissant rolls and flattened them out.
I brushed each one with melted butter and added some semi sweet chocolate chips.

I rolled them up and put them on a parchment covered cookie sheet.

I brushed the top of each with some egg white and added some chopped up almonds.

They baked for 15 minutes and then I dusted them with powdered sugar.

This is so easy to whip up for your family or to take to a get together with friends. They are so tasty and so easy but they look like you put alot of work into them. My favorite kind of recipe!

Simple Chocolate Croissants

1 pkg. refrigerated croissants

semi sweet chocolate chips

3 tbsp. melted butter

1 egg white

confectioners sugar

sliced or chopped almonds.

Unroll and flatten dough. Seperate into triangles. Brush with melted butter. Sprinkle 1-2 tsp. chocolate chips on each triangle. Roll each triangle into a croissant shape and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. In a small bowl, add 2 tsp. water to egg white and mix well with a fork or whisk. Brush the top of each with the egg wash. Top with the almonds, if desired. Bake in a 375 oven thats been preheated for about 15 minutes. Let cool briefly and sprinkle with powdered sugar. You can use different filling for this very easily.

Enjoy!

Loaded Baked Potato Soup with Cheesy Pull Apart Bread

2010-01-11T08:50:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I hope everyone is staying warm and surviving "Arctic Blast 2010". Its been so cold here in my neck of the woods! We have had the coldest temps here in about 8 years. Its kinda funny to watch the news and they call it the "arctic blast 2010". I have also been under the weather and cant seem to kick it so I have been trying to rest. I happen to come across my very favorite food blog (like I dont visit everyday!) Mommys Kitchen at www.tinamommyx3.blogspot.com and she had this delicioius looking soup with some wonderful cheesy bread that I just had to make it. I started out baking about 8 slices of bacon. It called for 12 but 8 is all that would fit on my cookies sheet.

Then I baked 4 good sized potatoes.
This is the rest of my ingredients. Butter, flour milk, chicken broth, salt, pepper, green onions (optional), cheddar cheese, and sour cream.

I started out making a roux of butter and flour.

Added in my broth and milk.

And then added the salt, pepper, baked potatoes, cheddar cheese.

This soup was so comforting and delicious you must go over to her site and see the entire recipe. I just love her site. She is a special girl and she has a real talent for food blogging. She works really hard and never fails to leave comments on other peoples blogs as well. She makes you feel like she always has time for a friend by her sweet comments.

This Cheesy Pull Apart Bread is a great accompaniment to the soup. It is extremely east to put together. Go see Mommys Kitchen and you will be glad you did. She has complete tutorials on both of these great recipes and has the recipes there with a printable button as well.

Homemade Butter

2010-01-05T17:15:00.000-08:00

Hello to all my friends! I have missed you! I have been enjoying the holidays and I hope all of you did too. I am always secretly happy after the holidays. Life is just simpler getting back to some sort of schedule and getting my house back in order. I absolutely love to decorate for the holidays but I also like to deep clean when I take everything down and it feels like a fresh start. My daughter is getting married in about 4 months (gulp!) and I am sure I am going to eating, sleeping and breathing wedding. We are doing well and I think we are on schedule but when I start to stress out about anything my relief is to get in the kitchen and cook. I have SO many recipes that I want to try from many blogs. My stack of recipes is getting thick! My news years resolution is to try to master homemade biscuits. The best biscuit I have ever had in my life is at the Pioneer Flour Mill, The Guenther House right here in San Antonio. They are beautiful and tall and dreamily light! If any of you have any pointers or helpful hints I would love to hear them. Of course you cant have a great biscuit without some really good butter (Not margarine. In the words of a dear friend of mine "Who is she anyway?") I made some butter today and you all must try it. It is so easy and its the perfect quantity if you are having a nice meal. It makes two small dishes. One for each end of the table.

This only has two ingredients, unless you want flavored butters (honey, fresh fruit, garlic herb) then you would add your ingredients for that at the very end. Today just plain ole creamy dreamy butter.

I poured in a whole pint of heavy whipping cream and about 1/4 teaspoon of salt into my food processor. You can also use a blender or just put it in an airtight container and shake it. I ended up adding a little more salt at the end and it tastes perfect.Put on the lid and process about 5 minutes.

When it has "lumped up" and gets very thick open the lid and pour off the liquid and put in your desired containers.
See here. One for each end of the table.

I got exactly one cup of buttermilk that I poured off the butter. Wish me luck for turning this into the biscuit of my dreams. Ha!

Homemade Butter

I pint of heavy whipping cream

1/4 teaspoon salt.

Place ingredient into your blender or food processor and blend for about 4-5 minutes until the solids look like butter. Pour off the liquid (Dont throw it away, its yummy buttermilk!) and put into desired molds or containers. Keep in the refrigerator.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2009-12-23T08:56:00.000-08:00

Holiday Greetings! I had great plans to blog ALOT more this holiday season and well, it just didnt happen. It doesnt mean I havent been baking and cooking alot, I just havent had the time for pics and such. We have had house guests for the last couple of weeks and everything has just been so busy! My inlaws had to head back to Kentucky so we tried to make the most of their time here. Time with family is so important! My wish for you all is to have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas and I also hope this will be the beginning of a prosperous and special New Year. All of my blog friends, Thank You so much for what you provide in my life. You all fill me with inspiration and great ideas to make my family and home better! Merry Christmas!

Christmas here we come!

2009-12-01T05:59:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. As you can tell we had food aplenty. I took this pic before we all sat down and devoured it all. We were very blessed with great company and since my daughter is getting married next May we have new family. We went to visit with them after the meal and had a wonderful time. I am very anxious to start my Christmas baking and sharing it will you all! Love to everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving my dear friends!

2009-11-23T08:26:00.000-08:00

I probably wont be posting this week due to the preparations for Thanksgiving at my house, but I wanted to take a minute to wish you all a wonderful, fun filled, blessed Thanksgiving. My wish for you all is to be surrounded by the love of family and friends and of course, great food. I have my menu planned out and have been soaking up all the wonderful Thanksgiving posts of my blog friends. When I am using your recipes this week I will be saying a little prayer for each of you, that you all are having a beautiful day filled with what we are thankful for all year long!
Happy Thanksgiving!

Cheese Wafers

2009-11-18T08:57:00.000-08:00

How can you resist a recipe that starts out like this?

These little savory wafers will be perfect to snack on for Thanksgiving Day when everyone is ready to eat and the meal is just not quite done. These little snacks are melt in your mouth luscious. With just a couple of ingredients they are easy to whip up. They need to chill in the fridge so they are the perfect "make ahead" nibbles. I remember eating these back in the 70's when I was a kid. How about we go a little retro today?

Here is the rest of the ingredients: flour, salt, butter and a bit of cayenne pepper. Not enough to scare off the kids though. Trust me, they will love these.

Cream together your cheese and butter. Add salt, cayenne pepper and then work in your flour with your hands.

You will end up with a small dough ball like this.

Roll it into a pretty little log and wrap in wax paper and put in the fridge. Super easy.

Slice it up into little thin wafers like this and put on a parchment covered cookie sheet.

Just like this. Then bake for about 8-10 minutes just til they're a little bubbly and just set.

So pretty and delicious.

These really need to cool really well. If you try to eat them too soon they will just crumble up. Once they are cool they are much easier to eat.

Cheese Wafers

1/4 pound of butter

1/4 pound of cheddar cheese, grated

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 dash red pepper

Cream together butter and cheese. Stir in salt and red pepper. Slowly add the flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until well blended. Knead dough until smooth. Roll into a log and wrap in wax paper and chill in the refrigerator. Slice thin and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or just until golden. Makes about 2 dozen.

Old fashioned Coconut Cream Pie

2009-11-16T15:57:00.000-08:00

Today I am bringing you my familys all-time favorite pie! Yay pie! The other day I was going over our Thanksgiving menu with my husband and he said "yea yea yea but what about the pie"? We all became big fans of this pie when his grandmother (RIP Memaw) would make it for the holidays. She would literally make everyones favorite pie. If that meant there were 9 different kinds of pie then so be it. We loved bringing home the leftovers. Boy but that woman could cook. We always just loved the coconut (we would taste the others just to make sure, it was only right-ha!). You start out with a baked pie shell just like this one here-

Mix your sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan, gradually add your 3 c. milk
Stir constantly...
Keep on going....til it thickens and boils for one minute.
Stir half of hot mixture into 3 slightly beaten egg yolks.

Just like this....

Then put it all back in the saucepan and cook another minute. Add all but 3 tablespoons coconut and vanilla and mix well.

Pour into your baked shell.

Now for the meringue.(Dont be nervous. Sometimes it make me nervous).

Beat egg whites, salt and cream of tarter til soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Spread this over your filling making sure your touch all sides. Sprinkle that 3 tablespoons coconut you saved over the top. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes.

Old fashioned Coconut Cream Pie

9 inch baked pie shell

2/3 cup sugar

3 tbsp. corn starch

3 c. milk

3 eggs, seperated

1 cup shredded coconut

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

Dash of salt

1/4 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan. Gradually add milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and begins to boil. Let boil for 1 min. Remove from heat and stir half of the mixture into 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten. Blend it back in with remaining hot mixture. Cook another minute. Remove from heat. Reserve 3 tablespoons coconut mix in the remaining coconut and 1 tsp. vanilla. Pour into pie shell. Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and vanilla while beating. Spoon over filling making sure to reach the edges. Sprinkle with reserved coconut. Bake at 350 for about 8-10 minutes or until golden.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

The Pioneer Woman Cooks!

2009-11-12T17:49:00.000-08:00

I have been following The Pioneer Womans blog for awhile now. I just cant get enough of her stories of her life, gardening, and especially the cooking. I have made too many of her recipes to count and I am not fibbing when I say I have never had a bad experience with any of them. So much to my delight, she has published a cookbook. In this book she does the step by step tutorials that I love so much. Everyone needs this book in their collection. She has some cute stories in there too and some great photography of the ranch that she lives on. I got mine at Wal Mart but I saw it at Borders too. Love it!

Fall Weather and Spice Tea

2009-11-09T14:59:00.000-08:00

Happy Fall Everyone! Its not super cold here but there is cooler temperatures down our way. It has been mid 70's and just gorgeous outside. This morning when I woke up and opened all the blinds to let in the light I noticed that the trees in the backyard are changing colors. Keep in mind that in our area we really dont have a change of seasons. It usually works this way. Super hot one day, then a cold front blows in, its cold for one or two days then back to super hot. Thats pretty much it in a nutshell. The trees in our backyard looked so pretty that I had to go outside and take a few pictures to show you. They looked really pretty with all the different shades of fall. This is my favorite time of year!

My backyard!

My sideyard!

My pretty little BellaGrace keeping watch. Shes a sweet little doll and she is just enjoying the sun.

Charlie watching the dogs behind us making sure that he is ready if they want to play.

I went to Wimberly Market Days this weekend with some great girlfriends and I found this bleeding heart plant. I have tried to grow it before and had no luck. We shall see this time. It is beautiful right now. I re-planted it in a bigger pot and it perked up. I hope that I can protect it through our harsh winter. Ha!

With the cooler temperatures settling in I am reminded of when I was a kid and my mother would make this spice tea. This is a truly southern recipe that is very popular. It is also a great gift for teachers, girlfriends and just to make for yourself.

Here are your ingredients:

Just put them all in a bowl...

Mix the ingredients thoroughly with a fork until well blended.

Put in an airtight container until ready to use. So simple! So tasty! This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled.

Add a heaping tablespoon per coffee cup full of steaming water.

This is great for a winters day. It will warm you from the inside out!

My Fall Swap!

2009-10-20T06:41:00.000-07:00

I participating in a fall/halloween swap hosted by Lori at Morning Glories and Moonflowers and once again, I had a great time shopping for my new friend Valorie from Wisconsin! Hi Valorie! She sent me the most wonderful things. She is a very talented lady. The outside of the box was so pretty and I can tell she spent alot of time on it. She has really great handwriting and it looked awesome.

Look at the great pumpkins she put on the outside of the box!

It was so cute!

My pictures are not so great and didnt do the goodies justices but I really wanted to share these with all of you.

This was how it looked before all the unwrapping. I was so excited!

This is a vintage cone I hung on the front door knob. I am going to fill it with some delicious something!

She include some candles that are making my house smell awfully good. And also some very cute coasters that I dont even like to put drinks on because I dont want to mess them up!

Thanks again Valorie, for making this fall season so special!

A yummy treat for the extra pie crust!

2009-10-04T17:21:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up and even after I was grown my mother always like to make pecan pie whenever we had a family get together. My mother makes wonderful pecan pie. When we would make the crust she would always have a little bit left. She never liked to throw it out so this is what she would do with it:

Here are the scraps leftover.

Roll it out a little bit without handling it too much so it doesnt get tough.

The put little pats of butter on it and sprinkle it liberally with sugar and cinnamon. Bake this for about 10 minutes and it is so good and you dont feel like your wasting anything. Neat!

Fancy Lemon Pound Cake with Glaze!

2009-10-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

I cant tell you guys how much I am enjoying my Debbie Macomber Cedar Cove Cookbook. It has the best recipes in it. And so so easy! I didnt take many pics because I got caught up in baking and before I could catch myself I would be moving on to the next step. I served this cake to a group of my friends and it got rave reviews. Lemon flavor is a funny thing, some like it and some dont, there is usually no middle ground. This has all fresh lemon in it so it has the crisp tartness to it and it turned out beautifully. Here goes:This calls for cake flour which seems to give it a smoother texture. And also, sugar, butter, baking powder, fresh lemons, vanilla and salt. Oh and lemon zest. Missing ingredient: eggs. Like I said, I was moving on.
I did take of pic of the lemon zest because I think its pretty. Undetectible in the cake because it will go through the food processor with the sugar.

Look at this texture. It is great with coffee. The glaze gives it just the right sweetness!

Fancy Lemon Pound Cake with Glaze

1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self rising)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 tablespoons lemon zest

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup unsalted butter, melted plus extra for greasing the pan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set oven rack to middle position. Light butter your 9x5 loafpan. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. In a food processor pulse granulated sugar and zest until combined. Add lemon juice, eggs and vanilla. Process until combined. With machine running add 1 cup melted butter in a steady stream. Transfer to a larger bowl and fold i flour just until combined. Pour batter into prepared batter and smooth top. Bake 60 to 70 minutes until golden and a pick stuck in the center comes out clean. Transfer to wire rack and cool 15 minutes. Invert cake onto rack and cool completely.

Glaze:

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 cup confectioners sugar

In a small bowl whisk all ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over cake.

Charlie

2009-09-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

This summer my daughter Jena and I were on our way home from Wal Mart. We live in the country so there is a road we go down that is not very populated. There are some houses but they are kind of off the road. It was one of those beautiful Texas days in July when the temp. was hovering around 105. I mean it was hot. We were riding along talking and all of a sudden we both notice a puppy on the side of the road up to the top of his head in stickers and panting like crazy. My daughter tried to convince me it belonged to someone on that road but I just couldnt leave it there. I am so glad I didnt. Jena opened the passenger door and he just hopped in. It was almost as if he were waiting for us. He had alot of stickers on him but he didnt smell or anything. We came home and we made flyers with his picture on it and our number but no calls. I know in the country alot of people dump dogs (I swear, I better not ever catch anyone doing that or I will not be responsible for my behavior!) Well after just a little while we all fell in love with this sweet natured, very smart pup. He is now a part of our family and I hope he will be forever. This may seem silly to some but when I look at this dogs eyes I know I was meant to find him that day. He is completely potty trained and loves our other animals and even plays with the cat!

Introducing CHARLIE!!

I think he likes us too!

Apple Cake in an Iron Skillet

2009-09-23T06:13:00.000-07:00

Good Morning All!! I just have to spread my happiness around today! We are at 65 degrees this morning. Yep. Thats 65 degrees. I cannot express to you what this weather does to me. It motivates me, inspires me, it gives me a feeling of renewal, it makes me want to bake fall things, makes me want to get up and move and get something done! It looks like we may get a little rain too! I have my daughter home with me for a couple days. She is 20 years old but still my baby. She called me day before yesterday and told me she was sick. She has an apt. on the other side of town and it was killing me I wasnt there to take care of her. Yesterday my husband and I went and picked her up and took her to the dr. FLU! YUCK! I brought her home with me and have been taking care of her. ( I secretly love this! Not that shes sick, but that I get to baby her).I have made plenty of soup, chili, and baked potatoes the last couple of days but I also made this yummy, yummy cake. I mean this cake is really good. You really need to try it. It has a very rustic feel. I love anything I can bake right in my cast iron skillet. I absolutely love my cast iron pans and after about 20 years they are seasoned just right. Before I get to the recipe I have to tell you that it came from one of my favorite blogs www.thepioneerwoman.com. Even though my photography isnt what it should be-yet (Coming soon-better pics!) you should go over to Ree's site and see her tutorial. Its awesome. These apples in this first pic represent my favorite color. This apple green is so fresh and clean I realized I had three rooms in my house with this as a dominant color. I need to branch out and try other colors but I gravitate toward this color! On to the recipe:

Start by melting butter and sugar in your skillet.

Peel, core and wedge your apples and lay them curved side down til they are gettting soft. Just a little head up: Your house is going to smell wonderful!

Dice up the remaining apple.

Mix up the batter portion of the recipe and spread over the apples. Bake for just about 20-25 minutes and its perfect.

Look at that beautiful cake. It would be so wrong to not have Blue Bell homemade vanilla with this!

Apple Cake in an Iron Skillet

4-5 small Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges

1 3/4 stick butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 stick butter

2/3 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or more if your like me!)

1 small Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and chopped finely

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a 9 or 10 inch iron skillet melt your butter over low heat. Add 3/4 cup sugar to the pan and stir around, then place apple slices, wedge side down in the butter. Dont pack them too tightly but dont leave overly large gaps. Allow this to cook over med. low heat while you make the batter. In the bowl of an electric mixer beat 1 stick of butter and 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in vanilla and eggs. Add sours cream and mix well. Gradually add flour mixture until just combined. Gently stir in the chopped apple. Remove from heat and spread batter over the top very gently until batter is evenly distributed. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cake is golden brown and bubbly. Allow cake to sit in skillet for 5 minutes. May be inverted to a serving platter. This cake is absolutely delicious!

Coming Next: Another Debbie Macomber Cedar Cove Cookbook Recipe!!

Fresh Herb Crab Cakes with Homemade Tartar Sauce

2009-09-20T17:44:00.000-07:00

I have made my first recipe from my Debbie Macomber Cedar Cove Cookbook. I have enjoyed this book so much! I have marked several recipes in it that I cant wait to make. I have wanted to make crabcakes ever since my husband and I had fresh ones in Maryland. I love crabcakes and I have never had any as good as when we went there. They were so fresh with nice lumps of crabs in them. These are wonderful because they have fresh herbs in them and the taste is just perfect. The homemade tartar sauce really tops them off perfectly. Another thing, I am so sorry about my pics. My camera was dropped when my daughter had it with her friends. Uggh. So I am using this cheapy one in the meantime. I have my eye on a new camera, I just gotta save my pennies, er, dollars for a bit. I realize this is my first seafood post! I hope you all enjoy it!Here are the ingredients. That bowl of goo is a slightly beaten egg!
This is the mixture before formed into patties. Again, terrible pics. Sorry!

After the patties are formed they need to be refrigerated awhile so I have them on a cookie sheet.

I sure do wish you could see this better. They were so good after being fried in hot oil. They were very tasty. I served them with a nice caesar salad.

Fresh Herb Crab Cakes with Homemade Tartar Sauce

1 pound lump crabmeat

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup mayonaise

3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped

1 tablespoon minced fresh chives

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 large egg, slightly beaten

In a large bowl combine crab, scallions, breadcrumbs, mayo, parsley, tarragon, chives, salt and pepper. Fold in beaten egg just until moistened. Using about 1/2 cup each form mixture into patties. (I made mine kinda thick). Place on a platter or baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours. Warm oil in a large non stick skillet over medium high heat. Cook cakes 4 minutes per side until golden and cooked through.

Homemade Tartar Sauce

1/2 cup mayonaise

2 tablespoons minced cornichons (I used baby dills, my store didnt have these!)

1 teaspoon cornichon juice (I just used the pickle juice)

1 tablespoon minced red onion

1 tablespoon minced drained capers

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

In a medium bowl mix all ingredients and serve with warm crab cakes.

Stuffed New Potatoes

2009-09-14T18:40:00.000-07:00

I went to a party last week and the host had some fabulous appetizers. I really could forgo any meal if there are great appetizers. I love to be able to munch and visit more than anything when you are with people you havent seen in awhile. These little bite sized stuffed potatoes were so tasty I kept sneaking them. I didnt get the recipe so I just made up my own. These little savory bites are really versatile. I kept thinking they would be really good with some chorizo sausage (mexican sausage with a strong chili powder taste) mixed in. First, I slowly boiled them until they were tender.Then I used a melon baller and scooped all the insides out and saved that to mix in with the filling.

I added some cream cheese, butter, garlic, cut up some chives, and then added some season all and whipped it until it was light and fluffly.

I put them in a 425 degree oven for about 20 minutes, just until toasty across the top. They were really delicious. The best part of this is you can experiment with other things too. Add, bacon, cheddar or even some flavored cream cheeses. Go ahead, experiment!

My New Cookbook

2009-09-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend! I had to share my new cookbook with you. I have always been a big fan of the author Debbie Macomber. She has a series of books that are set in a tiny town called Cedar Cove. I have dearly loved reading these books. I really love any books that incorporate how cooking for your family and friends is the ultimate way to show how much you love and care for them. When I was in Wal-Mart this weekend I always look to see if she has any new books out and this one was sitting on the shelf and I grabbed it so fast! This is a direct quote from Debbie written on the inside cover in the front of the book and it sums up exactly what I think as well.

"I believe that food is central to the important relationships in our lives, and a good dinner sustains us in more than the obvious ways. Preparing and serving a meal is probably the ultimate expression of hospitality and friendship, comfort and love."

-Debbie Macomber

I am only part of the way into this book and I am savoring every page. I will surely be trying many recipes that I am reading so I will be sure to share them here. I cant wait!

Mini-Meatloaves

2009-08-25T16:59:00.000-07:00

Well I finally got my girl back in school. I always have such mixed emotions when its time for school to start back after summer vacation. I love not having a schedule but yet I miss it. I know that we are all much happier when we have one. I hope now I can get back to blogging in a more timely matter. I have been cooking but I havent had time to post! This is just finishing up the meal I had started in the two previous posts. To round out the meal I made these juicy little mini meat loaves. They are perfect for when your craving meatloaf but you want it quick!Start with a pound of ground meat and add salsa, this makes the flavor great and keeps it from being dry.
Add onions, a and cracker crumbs. Also, at this point is a good time to add some fresh ground pepper and salt.

Add 1/2 cup each monterrey jack and cheddar cheeses.

Mix it all up and put it in muffin tins. I also add some ketchup and cheese on top of them after they are packed in there. They only take 25-30 minutes and they are perfect. These are also great little even portions.

Mini Meat Loaves

1 lb.ground meat

1/2 cup cracker crumbs

1/2 cup diced onion

1/2 teasp salt

1/2 teasp pepper

1/2 cup each cheddar and monterrey jack cheese.

Mix well and put into muffins tins equally. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Yum!

Fresh Summer Corn Pudding

2009-08-04T08:16:00.000-07:00

This part 2 of my last post. I had mentioned that I made a great meal and I want to share it with you. The other side dish that I made was Fresh Summer Corn Pudding. I have had many different corn pudding recipes over the years and they were good, but this is the first one that I have made that I would call exceptional. It is the right amount of flavors and anything using fresh corn is just so summery. Something we need down here where it is scorching.Your ingredients.
Beat your eggs. I beat them until they were all one color.

Add your corn, onion, and peppers. And then flour, salt, paprika and the kicker, cayenne pepper. It gives it just the right amount of kick. Add melted butter and half and half. Mix mell.

This is a pudding type of dish so you cook it in a 9x13 with a couple of inches of water, placing your casserole dish in the water. There is probably so many grammatical errors in that last sentence but I am typing as I think it!

This stuff is heavenly! Enjoy!

Fresh Summer Corn Pudding

3 eggs

2 cups corn, cut off the cob

1/4 cup chopped onions

1/4 cup chopped green peppers

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1/4 cup butter melted

1 cup half and half

Whisk your eggs in a medium mixing bowl. Mix in corn, onions, and peppers with a spoon. Add flour, salt, paprika and cayenne pepper, stir well. Add melted butter and half and half. Spoon into a buttered casserole dish. Place the casserole in larger dish with about 1/2 inch water. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for about 40 minutes. Mine needed about 10 min more. Its done when you stick a knife in it and it comes out clean.

Packet Potatoes

2009-07-31T16:20:00.000-07:00

I made the most wonderful meal last night. I would like to see all of you making this because it was seriously out of this world! These potatoes I saw on The Pioneer Woman site, which I look at daily. I have never made anything from her that didnt turn out great. My dad used to make potatoes like this for the BBQ pit and they had similiar ingredients and he also topped them with parmesan cheese. The kicker for these potatoes is that you add heavy cream. When these babies are done cooking they have the most amazing creamy sauce. It has very simple ingredients so you can pretty much make them anytime. The chances are very good you will have all the stuff on hand. I have to say, these little pre cut foil pieces come in very handy if you happen to ever come across them at your local grocery store. I also made a delicious corn pudding and some mini meatloaves and I will post those tomorrow and Sunday.In each piece of foil is one potato, cubed, chopped onions, salt, pepper, chopped parsley (fresh would be best, but you know, you do what you gotta do) and some pats of butter.
Okay, now this is just the best part. I guess I poured about 1/4 cup over the top of each.

It wasnt soupy, but you could see it.

Sealed them up tight and cooked about 45 minutes. The end result is a creamy, wonderfully tender and flavorful side to any kind of meat!

Packet Potatoes

4 medium sized baking potatoes, cubed

1 cup onions, chopped

sprinkle of salt

sprinkle of pepper

chopped parsley to taste

1 stick of butter, divided into tablespoon sized pats

1 cup of heavy cream

Cut four squares of foil and place a cubed potato in each. Top with 1/4 cup onion. Add salt, pepper and chopped parsley to taste. Evenly distribute the pats of butter on the four potatoes. Pour 1/4 cup heavy cream over each. Seal up and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.

Apron Fashion Show

2009-07-29T12:21:00.001-07:00

I wanted to show you all my aprons today before I post my planned recipes today. I'm not sure why, I think its because I am in love with my apron model. This is my baby Jena. My 16 year old baby. She very sweetly indulged me as I had her put on each of my aprons and let me take pictures of her. She even paused the movie she was watching. Gotta love her. The first one I am going to show you I received at my bridal shower 23 years ago from a dear friend. Its kind of worn but that just adds to the charm!

Look a little closer...Joan is usually not an easy name to find. This also had a pot holder to go with it but I am not going to show you that. Its very very worn and even has a smell about it.

This one I got in Canton, Texas at the trade day. A lady there had these and they are made by apronality. I posted about this in a previous post.This one I got at Target, it is almost like wearing a full party dress. It just feels good on. The skirt is nice and full and the colors are beautiful.
This one I ordered from Amazon.com. It is the basil polka dot. I first saw it on Sugar Pie Farm House. Please go check out her blog! You will fall in love with her and want to read the entire blog. Her house is fabulous but what you really want to look at is her pantry. It is the coolest pantry I have ever seen. She does a review on this apron and you have to watch it! I couldnt help but go straight to Amazon.com and order it! I especially love the ruffles!

Thank you so much Jena for being my awesome apron model!!! And also a big thank you to all of you reading this blog, I wish you all could come over for coffee!

Just a few things....

2009-07-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone has had a great start to their week. Not a whole lot of cooking going on around here but I have been working in my back yard. Keep in mind, I am in Texas and this is not very encouraging. We have had NO rain! My husband and I went to a plant nursery in San Antonio not too long ago called The Rose Emporium. There is also one in Brenham, Texas but I have to say, I like the one in San Antonio better. They had a cute little potting bench that I thought would come in handy when I am starting seedlings or just repotting a plant. My husband took a picture of it and he actually made this for me. It looks EXACTLY like the one we saw that was $100. He made it for about $18. I am so pleased with how it turned out. He did such an awesome job!

I wanted to show you all this beautiful potato vine that I have in my backyard. My mother brought me the "potatos" to start a vine a couple of years ago and it was fun to watch it grow. It grows really fast! And it is just so beautiful and lush green (when just about everything else isnt). This fall it will start to put on little brown potatoes and when the first cold front comes in I just picked the potatoes and kept them until this spring until I planted them and watched this grow. Does anyone know anything else about his plant and maybe if they ever bloom?

I also found this at the grocery store yesterday. My picture is not too good but it is sweet and salty, glazed and roasted pecan pieces. They are old fashioned ice cream topping. It is made by B. Lloyds but Paula Deen is on the front. Usually if she has anything to do with it, it is going to be good! I cant wait to try these, I thought they may be good on a salad too!

Bar B Que Meatballs

2009-07-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

Its been awhile since I have been on here again but I think about this blog and all of you all the time. We just had a great weekend down at the coast for the 4th of July and last week I worked alot of hours. As a result of all this crazy busy-ness I havent been able to cook! I sure do miss it. I made this recipe a month or so ago and finally took pics. This recipe is a favorite of all of ours. I read about it on The Pioneer Woman site awhile back and I have made it a few times. Ree, the pioneer woman, calls it comfort food to the max and is she ever right! The flavor of this is incredible. It is great with a side of creamy mashed potatoes. It is also great leftovers, if you happen to have any. Please try this, you will love it. This first pic is actually of the ingredients you need for the sauce that you will pour over it after you put together the meatballs and before you cook it.
You can go ahead and mix this together while you are preparing the meatballs. It will give the sauce and chance to "marry". I always thought that was a funny term for cooking, but I think it helps when this sauce can sit and mingle. This touch of sweet and savory sauce is what makes this dish so tasty!

Mix up your meat mixture. It is ground beef, oats, milk, minced onions, salt, pepper. So easy!

Shape into balls and place in your freezer.

After freezing them for about 5 minutes, dredge in flour and brown in canola oil.

Place in your baking dish and pour the sauce over all of them.

Bake for 350 for about 45 min. These things are absolutely amazing.

BAR B Q Meatballs
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
3/4 cup oats
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons minced onion
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
plenty of ground black pepper

Sauce
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons worcestershire
4-6 tablespoons minced onion
Dash of tabasco

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together for the sauce and set aside. Combine meatball ingredients. Roll into medium sized balls and place on a cookie sheet and put in the freezer for about 5 minutes. Remove from freezer and immediately dredge in unseasoned flour. Brown meatballs in canola oil and place into a baking dish. Spread sauce evenly over the meatballs and bake for 45 minutes.

Your entire family will love these, I guarantee it. I know its summer and its hot but sometimes we need to feed our soul with some comfort food. On a different note, please pray for rain. We are really drying up down here in south Texas. I worry for the farmers and for the animals!

Garden Markers

2009-06-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

Hello and Happy Sunday to everyone. I feel bad about not being able to blog lately but we have been ultra busy and I just havent made the time. We have had a death in the family, a wedding and dr. appts. and everything else you can think of. We have also been battling over 100 degree days here in south Texas. I cant help but think about what is going to happen to my yard. My garden is all dried up and its all I can do to keep the pot flowers going. A couple of weeks ago I found the greatest blog. (Blogland is so huge. There are so many talented people out there) If you like animals, cooking, gardening and a great writer then you will love it! It is called Chickens in The Road, go to www.suzannemcminn.com. I saw these garden markers on this blog and I knew I had to try them. I went to Home Depot and purchased all the supplies and my daughters and I sat down on the back porch and made them. My husband cut all the wood and we did the painting and put them together. I made them in sun yellow but I am going to make some more in some different colors. We had so much fun making them I think we will make some for gifts too!

Microwave Chocolate Cake~~This ones for everyone!!

2009-06-08T17:46:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope everyone has had a great start to their week. Now that I have this summer job easy recipes are a must. This is one that will top the list. It is a decadent dessert that is so easy and quick, yet looks so pretty when its finished. I made this cake at my moms house and we were so busy talking about how easy it was I forgot to take a pic after it was frosted. We couldnt wait to dig in. It was extremely good. I hope you all try it.

Here are the goodies you will need.

After your batter is mixed it will be extremely thick, just kind of mush it around evenly. This is a pampered chef recipe so I used my bundt pan stoneware. Their stones are so nice, they make my food cook evenly.

Here it is right after the sprinkling of cinnamon and sugar and right before the frosting. Since I made this at my moms my mojo was off. I didnt take enough pics. Sorry!

Microwave Chocolate Cake

1/4 cup sliced almonds

3 eggs

16 oz. sour cream

1 pkg. devils food cake mix

1 cup miniature semi sweet chocolate chips

2 teaspoons cinnamon, divided

1 tablespoon sugar

1 8 oz. container frozen whipped topping

Brush a bundt pan with oil. Chop almonds. Whisk together eggs and sour cream until smooth. Add almonds, cake mix and half of the choc chips, and also 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix all together and spread into your prepared pan. Microwave your cake on high 11-14 min. or until wooden pick comes out clean. Let stand in the microwave for 10 min. Remove from microwave and loosen cake from sides and invert onto a platter. Combine cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle over the cake. Place remaining choc chips and 1 cup of the whipped topping in a bowl and microwave on high 30-40 seconds or until melted. Drizzle over the cake. Serve with remaining whipped cream. Yum!

House Guests!

2009-06-07T15:39:00.000-07:00

My daughter Lauren is in Atlanta for a few days with my husband so I have been sitting for her boys. The loved the Quiche Muffins (below). I let them split one.
l to r: Cooper, Tucker

Quiche Muffins

2009-06-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

He everyone! I'm so sorry that I was MIA for awhile. I have been working at a summer job and I miss my blogging! This is a short term job and that is what keeps me going. I am enjoying the extra money. Todays recipe comes from the Pioneer Flour Mill in San Antonio. The restaurant there is called The Guenther House. The Guenther family started the Pioneer flour mill many, many years ago. The restaurant is located in the Guenther homestead and it is a great place to eat. One day this was their special. It is a great breakfast/brunch recipe. It is great with a salad and some fresh fruit.

Here is your picture of ingredients. It seems like alot.

Mix your eggs, milk, melted butter and biscuit mix together.

You will need some green onions, tops n all!

Diced ham

Shredded zucchini

Oil your muffin cups. I used these jumbo things.

Add your cheeses and mix well.

Fill the tins up almost to the top.

Bake for about 30 minutes and be sure to let them cool.

These things are just scrumptious.j

Quiche Muffins

4 eggs

1 cup milk

2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

3 cups biscuit mix

2 1/4 cups diced ham

2 cups shredded zucchini

3/4 cup chopped green onions

3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese

3/4 cup grated swiss cheese

3/4 cup grated provolone cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Oil the muffin tins. Stir eggs, milk, butter and biscuit mix in a bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients blending thoroughly (batter may be refrigerated over night in an airtight container-I did this and it was just fine). Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool before trying to remove from pan.

Perfect Pancakes

2009-05-10T18:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Mothers Day to all of you special moms out there and Happy Sunday to everyone else! I took my sweet little mom out for lunch today and then my husband and I went back to her house and mowed and edged their lawn. I also got her a really big flower pot, she just loves anything to do with her yard. I hope that she had a great day, I enjoyed doing it for her. My daughters were with me today so I was really happy about that too. I hope this week I will get to cook some great recipes that I can blog with you about. I do have one that I made this evening that has been on my "must make" list. This evening we had pancakes. I have no problem with pre-made mixes that you just add water to. Some are good and some arent so good. This recipe is so easy you dont even have to fool with the mixes. And the result is the most tender, fluffy pancake. I got this recipe from thepioneerwoman.com. As soon as I saw it I had to try it. You're gonna love it!

Here are your ingredients, you will also need milk as well.

You will need to mix your dry ingredients in one bowl and your wet in another bowl.

Melt your butter. Mix together dry and wet ingredients.

Ever so gently, mix in your melted butter.

I used my small cast iron fry pan. I am not sure why because I made massive pancakes.

I sprayed a bit of vegetable oil spray on the pan. Heated it up and poured a good sized amount of batter in the pan. I cooked them until they are covered in little bubbles. Then I flipped them.

These pancakes are just perfect. Make sure dress them up with a ridiculous amount of butter and syrup.

Perfect Pancakes

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons cake flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons baking powder

2 tablespoons sugar

2 cups milk

2 large eggs

3 teaspoons vanilla

4 tablespoons butter

Lotsa butter and syrup

Mix together dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a seperate bowl mix together milk, eggs, and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stirring very gently until just combined. Melt butter in the microwave and add it to the butter, stirring gently to combine.

Cook on a greased skillet over medium-low heat until golden brown. Serve with butter and syrup.

I'm still here! I'm still here!

2009-05-06T19:42:00.000-07:00

I'm so sorry I havent posted lately but the truth is folks, I just havent made anything blogworthy! I'm so ashamed. I did have a bad experience with instant mashed potatoes. Oddly enough it was the first time I have used them. I went to HEB and there was a lady there sampling them and giving coupons out. I didnt taste them because I had just had lunch but with the coupon they were 49 cents. So I bought two packages. I made a beef pot roast with roasted carrots and then I tried to pass these potatoes off. Nope. NO ONE would eat them, and I cant say I blame them. This weekend I will try to get to the stack of recipes I would really like to share with you, but again, its Mothers Day and I want to spend some time with my girls and my mom. On the other hand, my garden seems to be doing great. Onions are really growing and the grape tomatoes are fixing to turn red. Plenty of blooms on the big tomatoes and also on the red, yellow, green, and orange bell peppers. I got to the green beans in time to beat the cut ants and powder them but they had already cleaned off ten of my plants. Nothing left but stalks. I am sure we will still have plenty! Squash is growing great but no blooms. Cilantro and Basil is doing

great. I promise to bring you pics soon. I hope all you mothers out there have a great weekend!!

Chilequiles

2009-04-30T01:00:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone! I hope everyone is having a wonderful week! TGIF tomorrow! Mexican food restaurants are very popular in my area. As a matter of fact, when I get to travel with my husband it is exactly what I miss the most (as far as food goes!). The dish that I am bringing you today is my very favorite mexican breakfast. In most restaurants you can either get a plate of this or they will wrap it in a flour tortilla and serve it as a taco. Both are delicious. I started out by dicing up some corn tortillas, a fresh jalapeno, and some fresh tomato.

Then I added a couple of tablespoons of butter to a fry pan.

I used about 7 eggs and I added about 1/4 of a cup of half and half.

Add salt and pepper. I absolutely love scrambled eggs with lots of pepper, but do this to your taste.
Add the tomatoes, jalapeno, and corn tortillas and saute until the veggies are starting to cook and the corn tortillas are starting to get crisp.

Add your salt and peppered eggs over the top.

Slowly pull the edges of the egg as it cooks until it is as cooked as you like.

Top with lots of cheddar and let it melt.

Dig in. You will shout "Aye Caramba!"

Chilequiles

2 tablespoons butter

7 eggs

1/4 cup half and half

1 fresh jalapeno, diced (or to taste)

5 corn tortillas

1 med. fresh tomato

salt

pepper

1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, grated

Melt butter in your fry pan. Add vegetables and corn tortillas and saute until tortillas are starting to crisp up. While that is cooking crack eggs into a mixing bowl and scramble with a fork. Add half and half and salt and pepper to taste. Pour the eggs over the veggies in the fry pan and pull the edges of egg toward center as it cooks. When eggs are cooked to your liking, take off heat and sprinkle cheese over the top. Feeds 4-5 people.

Appreciate the Beauty!

2009-04-28T00:00:00.000-07:00

There is just something about this time of year when everything is growing or beginning to grow. Its a time when you just cant help but feel hopeful about all aspects of life. I love to plant in the spring. I love to get up in the morning and just walk around my yard and see how much things have grown over night. This is a pot just outside my kitchen with Rosemary, Lavender and Chives in it. These plants were tiny when I put them in this pot. Cooking with fresh herbs makes a huge difference.

This is the beginning of the basil. Gosh, I just love fresh basil.

My first two grape tomatoes.

This is hanging in one of my trees in the backyard. It is called a fuschia.

This plant is getting prettier and prettier every day.

I hope everyone has a great day!!

Coca Cola Cake

2009-04-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

Back during the holidays I bought the People Country Music Issue. It had a really nice article on the favorite dishes of some of the country stars. Faith Hill had listed this cake as a favorite of her husband Tim McGraw. She is a lover of good southern food being a southerner herself. She seems to really appreciate comfort food which is what this blog is all about (mostly!). All of my family and friends who gravitate towards my kitchen (because they all know there is some kind of baked good usually sitting on the counter) absoutely loved this cake.A boatload of ingredients. But really easy to make.

Start with the cake mix, cocoa powder, melted butter, coke, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a mixing bowl.

Mix it up until it is well blended.

Add marshmallows right into batter and fold them in.

Not your average cake batter.

Spread into a prepared pan.

Bake 40-42 minutes. Mine cracked a little on top but its okay, that will all be filled up with frosting.

After you take your cake out of the oven, make your frosting. Start with a stick of butter (of course!)

Stir in cocoa and more cola, mix well, and add confectioners sugar. Mix until ultra creamy. Fold in pecans if you wish.

Try to keep fingers out of it.

Spread all over the warm cake and try not to hurt yourself eating this.
You wont be able to stop.

Coca Cola Cake

1 pkg. white cake mix
4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 stick butter, melted
1 cup coke
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups marshmallows.

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 13x9 pan with vegetable oil. Mix together cake mix, cocoa powder, melted butter, coke, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Blend with and electric mixer for 1 minute. Scrape sides and beat for 2 more minutes. Batter should be mixed well. Fold in the marshmallows and pour into the prepared pan. Bake cake for 40-42 minutes. Remove pan from oven and begin icing.

Icing

1 stick of butter
4 tablespoons unsweeted cocoa powder
1/3 cup coca cola
4 cups confectioners sugar
1 cup chopped pecans

Place butter in a medium sized sauce pan over low heat. Melt butter, stir in cocoa powder and coke. Let mixture come to a boil, stir constantly and then remove from heat. Stir in the confectioners sugar until smooth. Fold in pecans. Pour over cake, spreading to the sides. Cool about 15 minutes. Enjoy!

I love my girls!

2009-04-20T06:24:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share some picture of my girls.

My Latest Swap

2009-04-17T07:36:00.000-07:00

Also, coming up next! Coca Cola Cake!

Make your house smell wonderful!

2009-04-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share a little trick that I use around here when I want to make my house smell good. All to often we have oranges, lemons and apples that just dont get eaten up. So I just take them and cut them up into chunks. I bought this crockpot around christmas time for $4 at walmart! I use it as a pot pourri pot.
Chop them up and pack em in there.

I add cinnamon (which you all know is my favorite) and nutmeg and ginger and a big amount of cloves because I have determined that makes the most unbelievable aroma. We are going to play a little game called "picture imagery". You need to imagine you see the cinnamon in the picture. Warning: We will probably play again soon. sorry.

Add as little or as much as you feel is right for your area. I load mine down because I can fool people into thinking I am in there whipping up some great dessert, then I hand them the oreos.

I fill up the top with apple or orange juice if I have some or if not I just use water. It works just as well. A few red hots work great too!

Happy Easter Wishes To All!

2009-04-12T08:43:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

My New Apron

2009-04-06T17:58:00.000-07:00

One of the great many finds I came across in Canton was this beautiful apron. It was made by Apronality. It is so pretty and has the cutest ruffles on the bottom. It even has a cell phone pocket on the top! It also reminded me of this.....

The History of APRONS:

I don't think today's kids know what an apron is. The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath, because she only had a few, it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.And when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms.Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.In the flll, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.

Bobbys Ranch Burgers

2009-04-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

I know that we are from Texas but I think we are weird. We dont like huge hamburgers. We dont like going to places where you order a burger and they bring out this monstrous thing that has a pound of meat on it. But actually, ever since my husband starting making our burgers like this about 5 yrs ago we dont like restaurant burgers as much as these. They are so tasty! It all began when my middle daughter had her friends over for her birthday one year and she wanted burgers. We didnt want just a regular burger so he thought of this. They are the best tasting burgers you will ever put in your mouth. We make ours to fit on a regular bun so that leaves some room for fries!Here is what ya need: Ground hamburger meat, bacon and cheddar cheese. Now really, doesnt that combination just sound yummy?

Chopped up bacon, cooked about halfway through.

Put your meat in a bowl.

Cube your cheddar into small cubes. Dont just grate it or it will cook away..

These are the only seasonings he uses. Salt, pepper, worcestershire sauce.

Mix it all together and form your patty. Whatever size you like.

These right here are the best buns!!! But use whichever kind you like.

Grill your patties to desired doneness.

These are just perfect!! The taste is just right.

This recipe really is just one that gives you an idea. Use the amounts that fit your family. We only used a couple of pounds of meat and about six slices of bacon and eight ounces of cheese.

Adjust to your family accordingly. Salt, pepper and worcestershire to suit your taste.

Very Vintage Easter Basket Swap-WHAT I GOT!

2009-04-06T07:20:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone! I'm sorry for the delay in blogging, I have been out of town since Thurs. evening. My shopping group and I went to Canton for a couple of days of relaxing, shopping and just having fun. We had such a good time! We saw alot more of the grounds this time. The place is just so huge. It is acres and acres of anything you could possible want. It is a great place to find collectibles and one of kind things. I will post more on that later. I really wanted to show you what I received in the Very Vintage Easter Basket swap I posted about last week. My package came from Shara in Farmington, AR. She sent the most wonderful goodies and I had so much fun unwrapping each item and reading the cute little notes she put on each.

That dozen eggs back there are candles! Adorable! A cute kitchen towel and a fuzzy pic frame that will have my girls pic in.

These are going to be on my Easter table. They are the honeycomb fold out decorations!

A little fun. You put this egg in water and it will crack! Cant wait to try it!

From left, a vintage easter egg, and a couple of easter pretties. The egg on the far right she actually made. and the egg in front was the card she wrote on.

Some Easter sweets!!

And my favorite, these eggs are beautiful!

She knew I liked to cook so she sent an Easter Egg cake pan with a mix, and one of the greatest cookbooks. The kind where everyone contributes their tried and true favorites. Cant wait to get cookin'!

Very Vintage Easter Basket Swap-What I sent!!!

2009-03-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to share with you all that I participated in my first swap! I signed up for the Very Vintage Easter Basket Swap over at www.foxglovesfabricandfolly.blogspot.com. Heidi does swaps regularly and I am so glad I signed up. I was paired with Shara in Farmington, AR. She has a great blog as well. Go see her at www.mydealoftheday.blogspot.com. I am going to share with you what I sent in this post and then in the next post I will show you WHAT I GOT!!!

This is the view from the top.

These little pillows almost stayed at my house!! The little scroll-ey candle holder were precious!

Her favorite candy is jelly beans and malted eggs, so I threw in a couple of small boxes each!

Mrs. Chicken

Mr. Chicken

This country lookin' carrot was so cute! I hope she like it as much I did!

There was pink candle holder as well, and also a little bunny with floppy ears peeking out.

There was also a vintage-y small candy dish and a great basket!

I so wanted to do good for Shara, I think she loved it!

True Love Waits!!

2009-03-31T06:13:00.000-07:00

My youngest daughter Jena, who is 16 years old has been participating in some classes at our church. The program is called "True Love Waits". She has made the commitment in front of her parents and the church of "saving" herself until marriage. My husband and I feel so blessed to have her as our daughter. Sometimes when we are talking about this particular commitment she has made we really just dont have any words to say how lucky we feel.

This is part of her group after the service on Sunday. Keep in mind this is only PART of the group and we were at 2nd service. There was another big group of kids at the early service.Showing off their "True Love Waits" rings.

This is Jena and her two besties. They have been friends from when they were tiny girls. Jena is on the far left. Emily is in the middle. Emily and Jena had went to the same caregiver when they were 2! They have been great friends ever since. Astrud is on the right. Jena and Astrud met each other the first day of 1st grade. They were like magnets to one another. They became friends that day, and have been ever since. I am so proud of these beautiful girls.

This is my husband and myself putting Jenas ring on her finger during the ceremony. Sorry for the "chest" shot. Please remember, pics do not capture the true image sometimes!!!!

Jena! Emily! Astrud! We are so proud of you and love you very much!

Cheesy Creole Pasta

2009-03-23T06:17:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone is having a great day! Its is raining here. Good rain too. Measurable rain. I am so excited because that means my garden will take off. I will post some pics soon. Today I am bring to you, the easiest dish. I mean really easy. I whipped this up in no time. My daughter brought me this recipe home she copied from somewhere. I think it is a Sandra Lee recipe. You start out with these simple ingredients:

Onion, red bell pepper, green bell pepper, diced tomatoes with green chilis, creole seasoning and boxed shells and cheese dinners. I doubled this recipe so there is double of everything in the pic. I added regular tomatoes because I thought two cans of tomatoes with chilis may be too spicy.

I used Hillshire Farms smoked sausage. Cut up into bite sized pieces.

Make your macaroni and cheese according to the box directions.

Saute your onions, bell peppers, sausage until cooked add the tomatoes and mix it up.

Add to macaroni and cheese. Woo. Tough. LOL

Then add your creole seasoning.

It really was tasty and if your needing something fast then this is the recipe for you!

Cheesy Creole Pasta

1 12 oz box Kraft shells and cheese, cooked according to directions

1 lb. Hillshire Farm smoked sausage cut into bite sized pieces

1/3 cup diced onion

1/3 cup diced red bell pepper

1/3 cup diced green bell pepper

1 10 oz. can of diced tomatoes with green chilis

1 teaspoon creole seasoning

Cook shells and cheese according to directions and put in a large bowl. In a large skillet cook sausage and veggies until sausage is crispy. Add tomatoes and their juice stirring to combine well. Add this to your shells and cheese and add your creole seasoning and mix well. Serve immediately.

My Creative Daughter

2009-03-23T06:11:00.000-07:00

I went shopping Sat. morning and I found the perfect little cutting board thingy that fits just perfect in the middle of the kitchen island.

I left for a couple of hours and my daughter made a cake. Cool, eh?

Sweetest Boy!

2009-03-23T05:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my cousin visited with her new baby boy. His name is Scotty and I am completely in love. I could not put this beautiful baby down. I now have pictures of every angle of this child. I know I usually try to stick with all things kitchen on my blog but I really could not resist sharing this with you all.

Sleeping. But we bugged him until he woke up.

He never even fussed one bit.

This can make my heart swell so big it almost hurts.

I couldnt leave his feet alone, they were so sweet!

Braised Chicken

2009-03-19T18:56:00.000-07:00

I have that excited feeling again. Its the feeling I get when I try something new and it turns out even better than I expected. And my family just loved this. I got this particular recipe from The Pioneer Woman blog. This lady has so many great recipes. She talks every so often about making a cookbook and this would be a great one for anyones collections I think. She has a great writing style as well. This dish if full of fresh veggies and a wonderful marinade. It is definately worth trying.

First you cut 2 bellpeppers into strips.

Add a large onion.

3 fresh tomatoes

In a seperate bowl, start your marinade with 3 cloves of garlic, minced or chopped fine.

Add these-paprika, olive oil cumin, curry, salt. And CINNAMON. Yes, thats right. Cinnamon. It does wonderful things to this dish.

Take your chicken that has been liberally seasoned with salt and pepper and quickly brown in a little oil.

This is what your marinade will look like. Its smells unbelievable. In a good way.

Measure a half of a cup of this.

Put a few of the peppers and onions along bottom and lay browned chicken on top. Brush half of the marinade over chicken. Add the rest of the peppers and onions and lay tomatoes over all. Brush the rest of the marinade over veggies. Bake for 1 hr. at 350. Maybe a little longer.

This is it. So So So Yummy!

Kays Braised Chicken

From: thepioneerwoman.com

4 chicken quarters

3 garlic cloves

3 fresh tomatoes

2 bell peppers

1 large onion

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/8 teaspooon cumin

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. curry

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 350.

Slice up 2 bell peppers. Slice the large onion as well. Dice 3 tomatoes. Finely mince 3 garlic cloves. Place garlic in a small bowl. Pour in 3 tbsp. olive oil. Now add paprika, curry, cinnamon cumin and salt. Whisk together. Season your chicken with salt and pepper and brown quickly in a little hot oil. Add a few of the peppers and onions to the bottom of a baking dish. Place browned chicken on top and brush with half of the marinade. Place remaining peppers and onions over the top of chicken. Put the diced tomatoes all over the top of the chicken. Brush veggies with the remaining marinade. Pour the half of a cup of chicken broth all around the edges of chicken. Bake for about 1 hr to 1 hr and 15 minutes.

These are not the exact directions of the original recipe, these are my words. I am working on my impatience!

Spring has sprung!! Random things!

2009-03-16T17:01:00.000-07:00

My poodle Pinky is so happy its spring she cant quit laughing!
These African Violets however are not ready to bloom.

But my Basil I am growing in my kitchen is sprouting up!

Sour Cream Apple Squares

2009-03-15T16:02:00.000-07:00

Hello, I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend. The rain was just wonderful. We have needed rain for so long it was actually weird to see it come down. The cool weather was also nice. I guess that will probably be our last cold spell of the season but that is okay. I have planted some tomatoes and some onions and some herbs. I also planted some red and green bell peppers. It is the most glorious thing to nurture these plants and see them grow. And then to cook with them and eat them. I just love the feeling. This dessert I am bringing you today definately falls into the comfort food category and as you can tell by my blog that is exactly what I love to cook. This recipe was given to me by a friend and has been sitting on my cookbook stand for probably 6 months. It smelled great while cooking but I have to say, it must cool completely. Then that is when it tastes the absolute best!

First, mix up flour, brown sugar pecans and softened butter.

Mix it til crumbly and press into a 13x9 pan.

Mix up some cinnamon, baking soda, salt, sour cream, vanilla and an egg.

Then chop up 2 cups apple.

It'll look like this. Not pretty but smells o so yummy.

Pour over crumb base.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes. Cool completely. And I mean completely.

So moist, so delicious. Whipped cream would be great!!!

Sour Cream Apple Squares

2 cups flour

2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup chopped pecans

Combine until crumbly, Press 2 2/3 cups crumbs into greased 9x13 inch pan.

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

2 cups chopped apples

Add these ingredients to the remaining crumbs. Blend well. Add the chopped apple. Mix and spoon over crumb base. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minutes for until pick inserted into center comes out clean.

More Fire King!

2009-03-10T11:17:00.000-07:00

This is my latest ebay find. I love the Fire King Jadeite Dishes. So do my girls. So I decided I would collect the pink for my oldest daughter and the blue (Azurite) for my middle daughter. I have gotten about 8 pink pieces and this set too. My china cabinet is getting full!

OH and yes, I have a third daughter! What am I going to collect for her? I am thinking pink depression glass. She is only 16 so she said "Cool".

Napkin Folding-and stress relief!

2009-03-08T08:41:00.001-07:00

I was shopping at Borders the other day and I always, always go to the bargain books. I saw this book and it piqued my interest. I have always thought that having cloth napkins at special dinners make them extra special. We went on a cruise a few years back and everynight in our rooms were small towels folded up in really pretty shapes. This is a big book. And very easy instructions. I sat down the other night when the house was quiet and I started folding. I could just feel the stress melt away. I know that is weird but it is so true. I had more fun doing this. If you ever get a chance to try this you gotta do it.

The Easter Bunny

Flowerbud

Creamhorn

Knotted Ribbon

Water Lilly

Springtime

Bishops Hat

Lovers Knot

Night Lite

I also forgot to tell you, the book was only $5. There is alot I havent done that you can do with napkin rings and wine glasses and holidays. I will post more later!

Vermicelli Salad

2009-03-08T07:57:00.000-07:00

Hi ya'll. Hope everyone is having a great weekend. We are so not enjoying the time change! I will be screwed up for a solid week. The only think I like about this time change is the fact that I know that summer and the end of the school year will be here soon! Today I am bringing you another side dish because I was looking back on all my previous posts and realized I had no side dishes even though I have many to share with you. The one I am bringing today is great for this time of year because it is so light and everyone tends to BBQ and just generally like dishes that arent so heavy.Ingredients: Vermicelli, vegetable oil, season all, green onions, celery, black olives, mayo.

Prepare your vermicelli according to the package directions.
Drain and place in a large bowl. Add vegetable oil and season all and let sit in fridge overnight.

The next morning kind of seperate it with a fork and loosen it up.

Add black olives, onions, and celery and mix well with a fork.
When mixed well add two spoonfuls of mayo and mix well.

Delicious and creamy.

Vermicilli Salad

1 package vermicelli pasta, cooked

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon season all

Mix this together and refrigerate overnight.

Next day:

add 1 cup celery, chopped fine

3 green onions tops and all

2 big spoonfuls of mayo

1/2 of a small can chopped black olives.

Mix well and enjoy!

Who wants to play???

2009-03-03T17:06:00.000-08:00

My friend Jennifer over at www.3sonsandadaughter.blogspot.com (yes, very similiar to mine, we have been friends for many years and recently discovered we had similiar named blogs!), is playing a game and I'm going to play. Here are the rules:It's open to everyone, in the United States, who reads my blog.The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something bought or made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I buy or make!

2- What I choose will be just for you.

3- It will be done this calendar year. (that's right, before December 31, 2009!)

4- You have no clue what it's going to be. A total surprise.

5- I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. But I would never send something that I didn't like myself!

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and make the same offer to the first 5 people who respond on your blog entry, thereby continuing the fun! The first 5 people to do so, and leave a comment telling me they did, will win a FAB-U-LOUS gift from me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it! Sounds like fun, right? So, let's play!

Okay, I know the game says "this calender year" but its only March. I am going to end this on Friday night and I will let you know who should be watching their mailbox and I will get my little "surprises" out by the end of March.

Remember! You gotta post on your blog to be eligible! Lets play!

Broccoli Cornbread Dressing

2009-03-03T10:14:00.001-08:00

Hi All! With Easter right around the corner and spring springing up everywhere I cant help but start thinking about our Easter Dinner. Although my kids are too old to hunt eggs (we do it anyway) they are old enough to really understand the meaning of the season and that gives me joy on a different level of motherhood. My girls make me prouder and prouder everyday. We have a small family but they get alot of happiness out of just being together. This side dish is a must at Easter. It is a springier twist on our Thanksgiving dressing and it goes great with the peach glazed ham that we have. I will bring that recipe to my blog soon! This is so easy and it doesnt tie up alot of your time or your oven time.This is the very simple ingredients.
Melt your two stick of butter and saute onions just a little, til they become clear.

In a mixing bowl add your cornbread....

and the onion butter mixture together. Mix.

Add your thawed out, but not cooked broccoli.

Add 4 slightly beaten eggs. Mix.

Add your 1 cup of cottage cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I put this in a small roaster I have. No need to grease the pan.

Bake at 400 degrees.

Easy Easy Easy.

Crumb Cake

2009-02-26T11:08:00.000-08:00

Every now and then I just crave a plain old crumbcake. With cinnamon, of course! Not that I dont like fancy desserts because I really do enjoy making and eating those. I like this dessert as a breakfast bread as well. Its especially good with your morning coffee.

This is what you will need for the cake part. Also, some vanilla, not pictured. sigh.

This is what you will need for the topping. There is no need to toast the coconut. It toasts as it cooks.

Start with your butter and sugar.

Add your eggs, one at a time. Beat after each egg.

Add sour cream and vanilla. Mix well.

Add dry ingredients and then mix in with wet ingredients.

Mix it up.

Spread half of this in a 9x13 pan. The odd thing is it will seem like the pan is too big. It cooks up big though.

Meanwhile, mix your topping ingredients up.

Sprinkle half the topping mix over first half of batter. Then top with remaining batter.

Sprinkle remaining topping mix on top. This will still seem like there is not enough batter in the pan but trust me, it is.

See? It turns out good.

Now would be a good time to have a little of that squirt whipped cream to put on top. Too bad we cant buy it because my kids squirt it in their mouths everytime they open the fridge.

Crumb Cake

Cake:

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup (8 oz) sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Add sour cream and vanilla, mix well. Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Add to cream mixture and mix well. Spread half of batter in 9x13 pan.

Topping:

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flaked coconut

1/4 cup nuts

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Combine topping ingredients. Sprinkle half of the mixture on the batter in the pan. Carefully spread the remaining batter on top. Sprinkle with remaining topping. Gently swirl the topping through the batter with a knife. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let cool and enjoy.

The beauty of this cake is everyone usually has all these ingredients on hand. Happy Cooking!

Sayin' Grace...

2009-02-24T09:04:00.001-08:00

I am constantly coming across little prayers that people say before their meals that I think to myself "I HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT!" I have decided to start keeping a list of them on here. I would so love to hear everyones traditions if you have one. Growing up we always said (and this includes all of my extended family too!) "Bless us O Lord for these thy gifts we are about to receive from your bounty O Lord. Amen." About 5 years ago we starting having my middle daughter Sara just say our prayer for us because she has the gift of saying what she has in her heart and it is usually what we have in our heart but we dont know how to say it. Love ya Sara.
This morning I found this. "Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, And may our meal by thee be blest."
Sweet, Simple, Lovely.

WHITE Texas Sheet Cake!

2009-02-24T07:45:00.000-08:00

Hi ya'll. I think everyone I know in this area has had a chocolate sheet. If your southern you have probably seen a chocolate sheet cake at every family potluck or wedding and usually have all the ingredients to whip one up at all times. I know I do. I think every southern blog on here has a post about it. I know I do. In fact, its probably the first thing all of us think about when we see the words chocolate cake. I know I do. Okay, enough of that. I must say when I came across this recipe last week I was intrigued to say the least. It was late. Way too late to mess up the kitchen again. I had on my jammies. I couldn't resist. I went and messed up my kitchen anyway. This cake is really very moist, buttery, and tastes sinful (in a really good way). If your not a huge chocolate fan (what??!) you will enjoy this nice change from the traditional sheet cake. It is definately worth trying and worth all the butter!Here are your ingredients that you will need. Except the water.

Melt the butter in with the water and bring to a boil.

Remove from heat and whisk in your dry ingredients...

Then your eggs, sour cream, and vanilla....

until smoothish.

Spread in your greased pan. You can already tell this cake is rich and buttery.

When its done, a pick will come out clean and it will look toasty.

While its cooling, brew some coffee and make frosting.
Peets coffee, Major Dickasons Blend is my new passion.

Melt butter in with milk, bring to a boil.

Remove from heat and add powdered sugar and vanilla. See that small brown dot?

Thats the vanilla.

After whipping that into a smoothness we only dream about. Add pecans.
Mix well.

Spread over your cake that has been cooling 20 minutes.

AAAHHH. I had mine with coffee. My daughter had the sparkling grape juice.

Sweetness!

White Texas Sheet Cake

1 c. butter

1 c. water

2 c. all purpose flour

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

2 c. sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup sour cream

1 t. vanilla or almond extract

Frosting

Bring butter and water to a boil in a large saucepan. Remove from heat and whisk in flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, eggs, sour cream and vanilla or almond extract until smooth. Pour into a 15 x 10 inch greased baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-22 minutes or until a pick comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 20 minutes. Spread with frosting.

Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

1/4 c. milk

4 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 t. vanilla or almond extract

1 c. chopped nuts

Combine butter and milk in a saucepan, cook over low heat until butter melts. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add nuts.

Hope your enjoy!!

Must Try Recipes~~~~

2009-02-20T05:41:00.000-08:00

TGIF!! I hope everyone had a great week but has an even better weekend. The weather here has been so great that I have really wanted to get out in the yard and start trying to make everything look better. We have had a pretty mild winter. I have been able to get in my kitchen and cook some. I have a huge stack of must try recipes from some of my favorite blogs. Although I do try to create some recipes of my own, I so so so enjoy making others as well. This first one comes from The Sunday Baker at www.thesundaybaker.blogspot.com. She has a great blog and some really easy yummy recipes. These caramel turtle brownies were excellent. You can get the recipe over at her blog!!

The layer of caramel in this just sent it over the edge!

This next one is called apple dumplings. It uses 2 cans of crescent rolls and is so easy! I guarantee you will not be able to quit eating these. I got this one from The Pioneer Woman Cooks! Go to www.thepioneerwoman.com for the easy peasy recipe.

These Apple Dumplings do have one odd ingredient. One small can of Mountain Dew! The sauce you will have in the bottom of the pan after baking is finger smacking good!

2009-02-17T05:31:00.000-08:00

Hello All!! I hope everyone had a great weekend and a special Valentines Day. I wanted to share with you what I got from my husband. He gave me these beautiful flowers. A dozen yellow roses. They look exactly like the ones he gave me about 25 years ago when he gave me flowers for the first time. I still have them, dried, in a glass jar in my bedroom.

My middle daughter Sara gave me this stunning long stemmed red rose. The color was so deep red and beautiful.

And.....I got a box of my favorite chocolates.

Kentucky Chili

2009-02-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone! My mother is out of the hospital and doing great. Well, not great but she is on the mend. I guess you cant have a surgery like that and spring right back. She is in alot of pain but she is moving around and walking some. Although I have been cooking over there, I havent been able to post. I did make this before her surgery but didn't have time to post it. This recipe comes from my mother in law, Joyce. She was born and raised in Kentucky and she is a wonderful cook. She cooked for all her brothers and sisters as she was growing up and we all love her cooking. Not too long after I got married (20 plus years ago), she and I were talking about chili and she said this is how she makes it. It is just delicious. Now when we make it we just call it Kentucky Chili. This is a nice twist on the chili we make here in Texas. The fact that we NEVER have lefovers is a testament to how good it is.The ingredient list is very simple, ground meat, tomatoes, tomatoe paste, onion, salt, pepper, chili powder, garlic, onion and.....drumroll please...angel hair pasta. Oh, and a can of kidney beans not pictured because my husband was on the way to the store to get it. Isnt it a tradition I forget to put at least one ingredient in the picture??

Brown your ground meat, onion, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
After draining your ground meat, cover with water and add just enough water to cover. Now add chili powder-lots of it. Then add your tomatoes and tomato paste Simmer for about 45 minutes.

I continue to taste and make sure it tastes right. Then add about a small handful of pasta. I like the angel hair pasta. It doesn't take long to cook at all.

And I usually break it in half.

Drain and rinse a can of red kidney beans and add those as well. They dont need to be cooked just warmed through.

This make a nice size meal and could be frozen very easily.Serve with your favorite cornbread. A dollop of sour cream on top would be good but my husband wouldn't go back to the store. Ha!

Heres the recipe:

2 lbs ground round

1 good sized onion

1 can diced tomatoes

1 small can tomato paste

salt to taste

pepper to taste

garlic to taste

5-6 tablespoons chili powder

1 small handful angel hair pasta

1 can red kidney beans

Place ground meat, onions, salt, pepper, and garlic in a large pot and brown. Drain. Then add enough water to cover meat. Add can of tomatoes and can of tomatoe sauce, chili powder and simmer this for about 45 minutes. Add pasta and cook another 5-7 min. Add kidney beans and heat through. Delicious!!

Prayers Please.

2009-02-03T07:05:00.000-08:00

Good Morning Everyone. I wont be able to post for a couple days. My mother is going in this afternoon to have some metal rods put in her back. She is in extreme pain and cant hardly walk. She is nervous but she is ready. I will be up at the hospital for a couple of days I am sure.
Be back soon with some more great recipes.
Love you all, please say a prayer for her.
Joan

Perfect Chicken and Dumplings

2009-01-31T06:55:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I know everyone who makes chicken and dumplings probably has their own recipe. My grandmother and my mother made chicken and dumplings that used whole pieces of chicken and the dumpling were the kind you dropped by scoopfuls into the boiling broth. The dumplings had nutmeg in them. This almost ruined me for life. For two reasons: I dont like any kind of fat or gristle in my soup. And, I dont like mushy bread in there either. So I worked on my chicken and dumplings because I knew this could be a good soup. Now, I have been making it like this for 10 years or more. My kids usually eat all the dumplings out of it first. They really are the best part. In my mind, this is what the perfect chicken and dumplings are.

This is the ingredients you need to make the savory broth. The pic is awful but it has chicken breasts, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, carrots celery and of course the obligatory missing ingredient. Onion. I promise I will start thinking these pics through.

Put your chicken, chopped onion and celery, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, and a Knorr chicken boullion cube.

After cooking this for about 45 minutes you will end up with rich, delicious broth. Remove chicken and coursely chop your carrots. When the chicken has cooled a bit, chop into bite sized pieces.
Add chicken and carrots back to the broth and simmer about 15 minutes.

Here are your ingredients for the dumplings. Guess What!! They are all there. Flour, milk, baking powder, salt, and shortening.

Cut your shortening into the flour, baking powder and salt until its crumbly.

It should look like this.

Add your milk and work into a soft dough.

Put dough on a floured surface and roll into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick.

Cut into little strips, whatever size you like. or circles or use a heart cookie cutter. Whatever feels right. Ha!

Place these on a plate. Meanwhile, back at the stove, get your broth to a good boil.

Like this.

Drop dumplings in one at a time and let boil for a bout 10 minutes. Most of the time I put the lid on about halfway. I dont completely cover it.

Ta Da! They are ready to eat.

Warning: You will crave this, even in the summer.

Question: Do ya'll make a bread to eat with your chicken and dumplings or is the dumpling considered the bread? We have a "discussion" about it everytime I make it.

Grandmas Lemon Bars

2009-01-28T08:25:00.000-08:00

Happy Hump Day everyone! I hope everyone is staying warm, we had a really big cold front blow in yesterday and the wind was absolutelyfrigid. We got to use our fireplace all evening and it was very cozy. Did all of you get your granola bars from Foodbuzz? I've only tried the cashew one and it was heavenly. I am going to have an official taste testing with my girls in the next couple of days and let you know the results. The recipe I am sharing with you today is near and dear to my heart. It is one that I have had my entire childhood. My maternal grandma all ways had these on her table and she would cut them into tiny squares and we would have coffee with them. I can picture my little knuckle-y hand grandma patting the crust down with her lips curled in. I get a little misty about it because those days were so sweet and we cant recover them. I have a pyrex pan that we all know as the "lemon bar pan". When my girls are helping me they know I always use that pan. I got this dish when I got married almost 23 years ago. It has seen many, many lemon bars. I hope you enjoy this recipe and feel the love with which I am sharing....

Its got a simple list of ingredients.
Sift together powdered sugar and flour, cut in the butter.

It will be crumbly like this.

Pat this into the bottom of your pan. Whichever one you feel works. This is not a 13x9 like it calls for, its a little smaller, but its our lemon bar pan.

While the crust is baking, beat your eggs.
Add your sugar. Okay, these photos are black and white because my daughter is helping me and experimenting with her camera. Kinda neat.

Add the lemon juice.

Whisk in the remaining flour.

Pour over baked crust.

Bake this for an additional 25 minutes.Cool completely, sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut in squares. Sorry Grandma, my portion size is out of control. Send help.

Lemon Bars Deluxe

2 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour

1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup butter

4 beaten eggs

2 cups sugar

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Sift 2 cups flour and powdered sugar. Cut in butter until mixture clings together. Press into a 13x9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes until browned. Beat together eggs, granulated sugar, and lemon juice. Sift together remaining remaining 1/4 cup flour and baking powder. Stir into egg mixture and pour over baked crust. Bake at 350 degrees for an additional 25 minutes. Sprinkle with additional powdered sugar. Cut into small squares after cooling.

GIVE AWAYS AT SOUTHERN PLATE! HEAR YE HEAR YE!

2009-01-26T11:31:00.000-08:00

Get over to Southern Plate! Shes giving away some super nice things...Easy to enter just blog about it and leave comments. You wont regret it!! Plus, shes got some great recipes. You cant go wrong with a Southern Plate recipe!

Bobbys Holy Guacamole!

2009-01-23T16:08:00.000-08:00

Good Sunday evening everyone! I hope everyone had a great weekend. It flew by. But, we were home alot so I was able to cook a few things. This recipe is one I have been meaning to share with ya'll since I started this blog last year. It seems like everytime my husband made it he was so quick and I was doing something else I was not able to grab my camera. I caught him this time. Friday night we decided to Bar B Q a brisket and some ribs. While there are plenty of times we will have the usual potato salad and beans, there are also times when we do spanish rice and beans. This time, we just wanted to make some brisket tacos. So, when we do that we always put guacamole on them. If we can quit eating it with chips before he gets the meat sliced!

Its a very simple recipe that is very versatile. You can make it spicier or you can add onions (I would have liked onions but no one else did). And now presenting:

The main players. Doesnt this look good? Fresh ingredients are the best.

Okay, I did it again. I forgot to put this in the above pic! Whoops.

Chop your tomatoes, fresh jalapeno, and cube the avocados.

Add your seasoning.

Mix it all up. My husband likes to keep this chunky rather than mushy. And please please please dont miss my Texas shaped chips. They make me smile to look at them. They are so fun!!

Bobbys Holy Guacamole!

2 fresh large tomatoes

2 large avocados

1 large seeded jalapeno

1 level teaspoon each, garlic powder, salt, pepper

1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Chop tomatoes and jalapenos. Add peeled and cubed avocado. Add seasonings and mix gently. Add lemon juice to prevent browning. We always save the avocade seed and place them in middle. This also helps to keep it from turning brown.

Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Frosting

2009-01-23T15:13:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday everyone! I have to say, I have been pretty excited about sharing this particular recipe with you all. I have made oatmeal cake several times over the years and had it at potluck gathering at different places, but it just never made that much of an impression. I always liked the name because I would think of an oatmeal cookie and thought the taste was similar. A great comfort food with good childhood memories. When I saw this recipe I almost passed it up but boy am I glad I didn't. The cake is so moist and after you spread the frosting and put it under the broiler the very top of the cake is a little crispy, then a layer of creamy frosting. This is just a plain ole' cake but one that will be requested many, many times I am sure. I was just about ready for bed last night when I decided to make it then had the guilts when I ate too much then went to bed!

This is your ingredients for the cake. I always like to take a pic of this because I am a visual person and I figure all of you are just like me! Ha! Humor me here..
Grease and flour your pan which, in my case, means spray with Bakers Joy.
Pour boiling water over oats. Bad pic. sorry.

Cream butter and sugars.

Sift together the dry ingredients.

Mix the two together and this is what the batter will look like. You can already tell this is gonna be good.

Spread in your prepared pan and bake.

Your topping ingredients.

Mix all ingredients together and spread over the warm cake.

My husband said that after I broiled this it reminded him of the topping of creme brulee. A light layer of crispy.

Exactly 22 seconds after it was done.

Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Frosting

Cake:

1 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Topping:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup shredded sweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13x9x2 cake pan. To prepare cake, pour 1 1/4 cups boiling water over oats in a bowl. Let stand 20 minutes. Cream butter and sugars with a mixer. Add oats, mix well. Add eggs and vanilla, mix well. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add to oat mixture, mix well. Pour into prepare pan. Bake 30-35 minutes.

Preheat broiler. To prepare topping, combine all ingredients in a medium bowl, mix well. Spread evenly over warm cake. Place cake under broiler 2 inches from heat source. Broil until lightly browned, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Serves 12.

Try this! Your gonna flip! So Yum!

My Latest Passion

2009-01-22T17:10:00.000-08:00

Fire King Dishes. A division of Anchor Hocking. They quit making this stuff in the '50's. It is what diners used back in the day. I have been collecting this for about a year and I have had a blast. I have gotten all my stuff an ebay and I love getting in the bidding wars! This comes in other colors to but the Jadeite is my absolute favorite although I am determined to get me some pink ones too!

Went on a little trip...

2009-01-22T16:36:00.000-08:00

Hello, everyone! I have missed you all! My husband, myself, my oldest daughter and her boyfriend went to San Francisco. My husband had a food show there so we tagged along to see the sights while he was hard at work. In addition to the usual sights, Alcatraz (great tour by the way), shopping in Union Square and China Town, we came across this neat little farmers market down by the fishermans wharf. Since I am drawn to all things, food, cooking and kitchen I made a beeline for this place! I say little but it wasn't. It was huge. It had the most beautiful vegetable I think I have ever seen. They were all grown within 25 miles of the market.

I found a man down there that was grinding his own flour. This is the package I bought. It has a delicious looking recipe on the back for Buttermilk Whole Wheat Pancakes. I can wait to try this!

There was a long building behind the market that was full of gourmet foods and kitchen stores. My favorite:

Good Grief! I love this store. I had heard about it but never had been to one! Love it Love it!!! If you are looking for any gadget, cooking pan, or just fun stuff for your kitchen then this is the place to go. I really could have stayed in there and spent lots of money but the kids wanted to see other stuff. Those crazy nuts!

This was the hall with all the kitchen shops! There was even one with nothing but kitchen antiques. I was getting creative trying to figure out how to get the stuff on a plane!

One shop really intrigued me. It was nothing but mushrooms. All kinds. Any kind of mushroom you could think of. This was called a mushroom farm. They had them in different varieties. You just keep them in the kitchen and just hack em off as you cook! Neat!

The BEST Bread Pudding~

2009-01-14T06:57:00.001-08:00

Good Morning friends! Sorry I have been slacking in the posting dept. but I have been busy. Busy doing I dont know what. I think I must have a touch of the post holiday blues. I havent felt like doing anything. Anyone else out there feel like this? I am sick to death of hearing about diets, weight loss programs, eating healthy. This time of year thats all there is on the news, talk shows, and you cant find a magazine on the newsstand that doesnt have something about diets on the cover. This is the time of year that people re-evaluate what is important in their lives I suppose. A good time to "start over" so to speak. Since I have been trying to rid myself of this grand funk that seems to have taken over where do I go but to the pantry. I have tried many, many, bread puddings over the years but just recently I came across this recipe that sounded like it might be just the one. After mixing it up and the beautiful aroma wafting from my oven yesterday I couldnt help but get my hopes up. It did not disappoint. This should also fall into the quick dessert category because it was very easy to mix up and I had everything on hand. No special trips to the store. Let me know what you think.

The very small cast of characters. (I thought I would let you see my daughter and her boyfriend on the fridge)

I only used about 1/3 of the sourdough loaf. The rest was placed in the freezer for some garlic bread later. Sourdough is the best for that.

I placed them in a 9 inch pie plate and kind of squished them where I wanted them. This doesn't make a huge pan which is nice.

This is your eggs, melted butter, vanilla, milk and sugar. Make sure you mix it long enough to dissolve the sugar.

Then pour that mixture over the bread cubes. I let it sit for a minute to soak before placing it in the oven.

Scrumptious. The perfect mix of bread and soft sweetness. The great part was as it was sitting on my counter cooling I would walk by and grab a cube and pop it in my mouth.

The Best Bread Pudding

2 eggs

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 tablespoons vanilla

2 1/2 cups milk

2 cups sugar

3 1/2 to 5 cups sourdough bread, cut into 1 inch cubes. I used the whole 5 cups.

1/3 cup of pecans, chopped finely. I was out but they would be awesome in there.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat together eggs, butter, vanilla, and milk. Add sugar and mix until the sugar is dissolved. Arrange bread cubes tightly in a nine inch baking dish, keeping the crust facing up around the edges and scattered within the dish. Pour liquid over bread. Sprinkle pecans all over and bake for 55 to 70 minutes or until crust is golden brown all over the top.

Although, this bread pudding is moist enough to eat just like this. If you really want to send it over the edge, make this vanilla sauce.

Vanilla Sauce:

1/2 cup sugar

1 stick butter

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix ingredients together in a small sauce pan. Stir constantly over low heat until mixture reaches a low bowl. Pour a small amount over each serving.

I have to admit. This did make me feel better yesterday.

Love to you all!

Capuccino Brownies. They're fancy.

2009-01-06T20:19:00.001-08:00

I made the most incredible brownies. Thankfully it only made an 8x8 pan or I would probably never come off the caffeine high. They have bittersweet chocolate, which I have never baked with and instant espresso. They taste absolutely heavenly. If there are any chocoholics out there please try these and if your not a chocoholic try these anway, then you will be a chocoholic. Simple as that. LOL. Hold on to your hats. They got three layers!!

This is your first ingredients pic. Thats the salt and vanilla up top. Woops.
yep, the butters up there too.

This is my 8 x 8 pan. I sprayed it with non stick spray, then fit it with some parchment as even as I could and sprayed it with bakers joy. The one with flour in it too.

This is my out of focus shot of the chopped up chocolate. To be added with butter, espresso mixture (espresso powder with 1/2 teaspoon water) over low heat until silky smooth. Add your next ingredients according to instructions. Annnddd.......

Pour that mixture into the parchment lined pan as evenly as you can. Then bake.

This is your ingredients for the next layer. The cream cheese layer. Sigh.
Now, all I did was beat together cream cheese, butter, vanilla, powdered sugar, vanilla and CINNAMON. That ingredients right there sends these over the top to yummyland.
Then put this in the fridge for an hour after you have it spread an evenly as you could. Ahem.

Finally, the third layer. What the recipe calls the glaze. It turns into a beautiful shell like top.

Just microwave all the "glaze" ingredients at 30 min. intervals until smooth and pour over cream cheese layer.

Refrigerate for three hours and it will lose its glossiness and have a matte finish. Ahh. All is right with the world.

Cappucino Brownies

Brownie Layer:

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened) chopped

3/4 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder dissolved in 1/2 tablespoon boiling water

3/4 granulated sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 large eggs

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup walnuts (optional)

Cream Cheese layer:

4 oz. cream cheese softened

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Glaze:

3 oz. bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

2 1/4 teaspoons instant espresso powder, dissolved in 1/2 tablespoon boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour and 8x8 inch pan, knocking out excess flour. (Or line the pan with parchment, this is recommened to get the brownies out of the pan). In a heavy 1 1/2 quart saucepan, melt chocolate with butter and espresso mixture over low heat stirring until smooth and remove pan from heat. Cool mixture to lukewarm and whisk in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs, whisking well until mixture is glossy and smooth. Stir in flour and salt until combined and stir in nuts, if you are using them. Spread batter in pan and bake in the middle of oven for 22 to 25 minutes or until tester comes out with crumbs. Cool completely. Make your cream cheese layer: In a bowl with an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon and beat until well combined. Spread this evenly over brownie layer. Chill for 1 hour. Make glaze: In a glass bowl place, chocolate, butter, cream and espresso mixture. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring until melted and smooth. If glaze is steaming hot, let cool a little bit. Pour glaze over cream cheese mixture very carefully. Chill brownies until cold (about 3 hours). When ready to cut simply lift parchment out of the pan. About 24 squares.

You cant have just one. Utter decadence. And yes, you deserve it.

Oh and yes yes-that is Fire King Jadeite (I'm pretty proud of it!).

Coffee!

2009-01-06T20:13:00.000-08:00

As you all well know, (maybe you dont but I am here to say) I love coffee. Most all kinds. I love to taste all the different regional coffees at Starbucks as they get them in. My husbands parents were in Honduras for a few months and they brought me back this bag of coffee beans. I cant wait to try them. I think I will keep the little sack though, its cute.

Hamburger Stroganoff

2009-01-05T17:03:00.000-08:00

I am so glad to be back to blogging after taking a small break. I missed catching up with you all. I am really enjoying reading how everyones holidays were. This recipe was really for my husband. When I first starting dating my husband his mom told me he loved her beef stroganoff. She made the stroganoff with the strips of meat, round steak or cube steak I think. I have tried to make that over the years and just never got the meat right. So I stick with this one. It tasted really great to all of us. It was a nice change from stew or soup for a cold weather meal. We had it with some crusty bread and it was a hit.

Here is your ingredients. Two bulbs went out in the kitchen so these pics are not super but you can still see what ya need to. The little red things in the front are beef boullion cubes since I didn't have a can of beef broth.

Here all you need to do is brown the ground meat with the mushrooms and onions. oh, and garlic.

Add your flour and it will thicken this mixture up a bit.

Then add your broth (or cubes with water, mixed according to jar directions), worcestershire, pepper and salt.

I added just sour cream since my family is not real big on horseradish. Now it will get really creamy.

This can also be served over different pasta such as small penne or even rice. Super good!

Hamburger Stroganoff
1 pound ground chuck
1 8 oz package of mushrooms
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 14 oz. can beef broth
1 10.75 oz can cream of mushroom with roasted garlic soup
2 tablespoons worcestershire
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup of sour cream
2 teaspoons horseradish
1 12 ounce package wide egg noodles cooked according to package directions and kept warm

In a large skillet, combine ground chuck, mushrooms, onions and garlic. Cook over medium heat until beef if browned and crumbly, drain. Stir in flour, and cook stirring frequently for 2 min. Stir in broth, soup, worcestershire, pepper and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer stirring occasionally for 15 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix sour cream and horseradish, add to beef mixture stirring to combine. Cook for 5 minutes or until heated through. Serve over cooked egg noodles. Garnish with parsley and more sour cream if desired. MMmm!
This is a great meal to make ahead and freeze.

The Nick of Time......

2009-01-05T16:45:00.000-08:00

It was time. Holidays are over. Everyone needed to go back to school/work/college. There was a very good chance one of us wasnt going to make it out of here intact. Whew!

Lemon Blossoms/Flops

2008-12-29T18:51:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday to all! Have you guys ever come across a recipe that is so easy that you feel like you cant mess it up? I have had this recipe for awhile and with all the down time around here after the holidays I thought I would try it. As you can see by the ingredients pic that it utilizes a cake mix and I just love recipes that do that. I guess I was trying to hurry I am not sure. I filled the little muffin pans too full. When they say only use a tablespoon of the batter in the muffin cups they really mean it. The first half of this batter came out of the muffin holes and left me with these mushroom looking mini-muffins. Sort of how my stomach looks over my jeans after this bountiful holiday. This really is an easy recipe and I must say that the taste (not the look) was very good and light.
Lemon Blossoms
1 box yellow cake mix
1 box instant lemon pudding
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Glaze
4 cups sifted powdered sugar
zest of one lemon
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp. water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin tins with non stick spray. Combine cake mix, pudding, eggs and oil and blend until smooth (batter will be thick). Drop NO MORE than 1 tbsp. batter into each muffin tin. Bake about 12 minutes. Turn onto a tea towel.
While muffins are baking, mix glaze. Sift powdered sugar, then add lemon zest, oil, lemon juice and water. Mix until smooth.
Dip the warm muffins in the glaze and set on a wire rack (make sure there is waxed paper under the rack). It takes at least an hour for the glaze to harden. Store in an airtight container. Makes 60 muffins.

Heres your ingredients. Simple. Simple.

Mix up your batter. It will be a little thicker than when you make a cake. I used a cookie scoop to put it in the muffin tins. Just make sure your scoop is only a tablespoon size.

Okay, now this is where I got a little frustrated. No, alot frustrated. There is no picture of me having to pull them out of the tin with my fingers. Nice.

This is your ingredients picture for the glaze.. Again, very easy.

Here is your glaze. It is very thin, but perfect for dunking that little muffin in.

This is the ugly batch. They are not supposed to be the size of a cookie across the top.

This was a little closer to what they were supposed to look like. They did taste good. Eh, tomorrow is another day!

You wont even think straight if you eat these!!

2008-12-28T17:42:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, I hope everyone is recovering nicely from the holidays. All the great food and relatives and too much of almost everything. I absolutely love the holidays but I also love to see them go away! Last night I was finally in the mood to cook just for pleasure again. We are such party animals that I found myself in my kitchen looking through recipes. I had printed this one awhile back when I first found it. There is an amazing blog that I have been following that has everything on it. It is called The Pioneer Woman Cooks. She is remodeling a guest house/lodge on her property and it is just ultra fabulous. I feel like I have been there with her and she has had a step by step on the process. Go check it out at http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/. I found these cinnamon rolls on her site and I knew someday I would make them. I have tried tons and tons of cinnamon rolls and the were all basically the same. These are different. They are the best I have ever had.The thing that kills me on these is the frosting. Not that the dough isn't just delicious but....well, you just gotta try it. I made half of her recipe because hers made 7 pans!! I still ended up with 4, but let me tell you. Its really okay....LOL!

I really had fun making these. I know that sounds lame but they are so loaded down with the filling that I found myself smiling. This is after the dough is made, rolled out slathered with butter, sprinkled with sugar and a bunch of cinnamon. Lawdy Lawdy. I feel a little faint just reliving it.

Okay. My husband, daughter and I couldnt really contain ourselves after they came out of the oven. I let them cool a little then poured the icing on. The recipe calls for maple flavoring but its not our favorite. I just used vanilla but next time I WILL use the maple. Odd ingredient: brewed coffee. Seriously kids, this is to die for. I couldn't even get the pic fast enough before they were poppin' them out of the pan and into the mouth!

Pioneer Womans Cinnamon Rolls

1 quart of whole milk

1 cup of vegetable oil

1 cup of sugar

2 packages dry yeast

8 plus 1 cup all purpose flour

1 heaping tsp baking powder

1 scant teaspoon baking soda

1 heaping teaspoon salt

3-4 cups melted butter

2 cups of sugar

generous sprinkling of cinnamon

Frosting: 1 bag of powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons maple flavoring, 1/2 cup milk, 1/4 cup melted butter, 1/4 cup of brewed coffee, 1/8 teaspoon salt.

Mix the milk, vegetable oil, and sugar in a pan. Scald the mixture (heat just before boiling point). Turn off heat and leave to cool 45 minutes or so. When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but not hot. sprinkle both packages of yeast. Let this sit for a minute. Then add 8 cups of flour. Stir mixture together. Cover and let rise for at least an hour.

Add 1 more cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir mixture together.(At this point you could cover the dough and put it in the fridge until you need it-overnight or even a day or two, if necessary. Just keep your eye on it and if it splurges out of the bowl just punch it down.)

Sprinkle surface generously with flour. Take half the dough and form a rectangle. Then roll the dough thin, maintaining a general rectangle shape. Drizzle 1 1/2 to 2 cups of melted butter over the dough. Now sprinkle 1 cup of sugar over the butter followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon. Now, starting at the opposite end, begin rolling dough in a neat line toward you. Keep it relatively tight as you go. Next, pinch the seam to the roll to seal it. Spread 1 tbsp. melted butter in seven round foil cake or pie pans. Then begin cutting rolls approximately 3/4 to 1 inch thick and laying them in the buttered pans. Repeat this process with the other half of the dough. Let the rolls rise for 20 to 30 minutes, then bake at 400 degrees until light golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes.

For the frosting mix together all ingredients listed and stir well until smooth. It should be thick but pourable. Taste and adjust as needed. Generously drizzle over the warm rolls. Go crazy and dont skimp on the frosting!!

Merry Christmas To All!!

2008-12-24T07:24:00.000-08:00

I wanted to take a minute this morning before the Christmas festivities begin and pass on some Christmas Cheer! I hope everyone has blessed holidays and get to enjoy the beauty of this season. I like to think of the new year as a great time to clean the slate and start off just the way you want to and to make this next year exactly the way you intended, however that may be. I hope everyone has a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year!!
Love,
Joan

Pecan Cobbler-Oh! So Sweet!

2008-12-21T18:35:00.001-08:00

Happy Sunday everyone! I havent been able to post too much on account I have been so busy. I think I am finally done shopping. I am one of the weird ones that doesnt really mind the crowds. I think its because I love people watching. I can go to the mall and get a cup of coffee and sit there and watch people for hours.

Last weekend my husband and I and our friends Priscilla and Ron got up very very early and went to College Station, Texas to watch a dear friend of ours daughter graduate from Texas A&M. I graduated high school with Shelly and my husband and I babysat her beautiful baby girl Megan when she was an infant. Now, she has a Bachelor Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. Jeesh. I am so proud of her even though I cant believe that I am that old! After the ceremony a large group of us went to a restaurant there in College Station, a wonderful steakhouse (I had my usual, chicken fried steak). For dessert my husband and I split a pecan cobbler with vanilla ice cream. Well, I couldnt quite get over it so when I got home that evening I had to make one. I have never made one before and this certainly will not be the last time. BEWARE: It is very sweet. I am a fan of almost any cobbler but I have to say, the ones with a real crust are just my favorite. I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Pecan Cobbler

2 1/2 cups light corn syrup

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

5 eggs, slightly beaten

3 cups pecans coarsely chopped

Cobbler Crust:

1 cup oat flour (1 cup oatmeal processed to a fine powder)

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 to 1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13x9 inch pan with non stick spray. In a large bowl, mix together, syrup, sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs until well combined. Pour 1/3 of this filling mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Add pecans to remaining mixture and set aside.

In a medium bowl mix the flours and salt. Cut cold butter into small pieces and add flours. Combine with a fork or pastry cutter. Add cold water a little at a time until dough forms and sticks together. Place on a lightly floured surface, knead a little and roll out into a 13x9 square. Place this on top of filling mixture in the pan. Pour remaining filling (with pecans) on top of dough. Bake 50 minutes until center starts to set. Cool about 20 minutes.

Pecan Pie is my mothers specialty and this does taste similiar to a pecan pie. Its very good but I think it is probably a holiday recipe only at our house. I think it would be better to also cut this recipe in half. This makes a good sized pan and serves alot of people because you cant eat a very big piece.

These are your ingredients.

This is the filling after you have put the first 1/3 in the pan. This is after the pecans are added.

Work the flours and salt together with water to make your dough. This is made with the oat flour and it really gives it a different taste. It is super tasting.

This is the dough as I am trying to make a square!

After placing your dough square (or squarish) add the filling with the pecans.

The baked cobbler, oh my, oh my.

Get a load of that crust in there. My very favorite part.

I got an award! Gosh, I just love that......

2008-12-18T19:12:00.000-08:00

I got an award from Nicole at http://www.heart4myhome.blogspot.com/. She is so sweet and if you are ever in the need of an uplift in your day that is the place to go. She has such a positive outlook you cant help but feel it.

I am gonna pass this on to Christine at http://www.mistressofcakes.blogspot.com/. She is a new friend and she is a sweetie. She also has some great looking stuff over there.

and

Cheryl at http://www.cookindunkinstyle.blogspot/. She probably doesnt know it but I have been stalking her page for awhile and she has just the best stuff. Everything she has on there I love and I wanna make everything. AND she has the cutest pup!

You girls inspire me everyday! Thanks to all three of you!

Love,

Joan

Chicken Pot Pies

2008-12-16T05:46:00.000-08:00

We are freezing. I mean its cold. Keep in mind we are in South Texas and we are sometimes wearing shorts on Christmas. Yesterday, the high was in the upper 30's. I had a fire in the fireplace all day long! It was so nice. My dogs love to go outside and play during the day but they went out to potty and couldn't get back in fast enough. Then they would sit at the door and wait for me to open it and then just kind of peek out and turn right around. On days like this I just gotta have something cooking. My middle daughter Sara is home from college with me so we made her favorite winter time food (though she does ask for it year round). A long time ago I got this recipe out of the school district cookbook. This is the best kind of book, where you can get peoples family recipes. I have changed it up and changed it up until it is now ours. It will be in our family favorites cookbook that I will start on after the first of the year. I just want to take a second here to thank everyone again that leaves me comments. I am going to answer each and every one. I appreciate them so much.

Chicken Pot Pies

2-3 lbs of chicken, cooked and deboned (about 3 cups)

1 cup of the chicken broth reserved from cooking the chicken

1 med sized bag of frozen peas and carrots

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of celery soup

1 large baking potato, cooked and cubed

1 1/2 teaspoons of pepper

1/2 teaspoon of salt

Crust:

1 cup of Bisquick-I like Bisquick, but you can use any kind of baking mix

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

Paprika

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bring cup of broth to a slow simmer and add frozen veggies and cook for about 2 minutes. Add cream soups, salt, and pepper. Add your potato. Mix until heated through. Spray 6 (2 cup size) ramekins with non stick spray. You can also use an 11x7 pan or pie pan. Prepare your crust:

Add bisquick, milk and egg and mix with a fork. This will be a little runny. Pour about 1/2 cup over each ramekin filled with chicken mixture. Sprinkle with a little paprika and bake for 20 minutes.

These are your ingredients. I accidently grabbed two cream of chicken soups. One is supposed to be cream of celery!! That on the right is my chicken broth. I love those measure cups that let you seperate the fat!

Boil your chicken with some salt, pepper and some chopped up onions. I used all thighs this time.

Boil your veggies in the broth and cook your potato at the same time.

After your veggies are cooked a little, add soups, seasonings and potato.

Just three ingredients for your crust mixture. Easy Easy Easy!

Pour about 1/2 cup over your filling.

Sprinkle with paprika and bake.

This is the baked pot pie. The crust on top is just enough bread to go with the filling. This was perfect on a super cold day. It will warm you all over.

Blueberry Peach Cobbler

2008-12-14T17:06:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!! I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful holiday season. At this very stressful time of year one of my few "surefire" relaxation techniques is to get in the kitchen and have my mind totally forget about everything and just create something. Being in my kitchen and getting the ingredients together to make something is just the best atmosphere to me. I've got my little dogs at my feet, the oven pre-heating and dishes clanging and I am totally content. My oldest daughter seems to be catching on to this same thing. She will walk in the door after work and say "Mama, lets cook something". She is learning to unwind the same way. I had some blueberries that I needed to use up so she made her cobbler. It is a Paula Deen recipe and she has tweaked it to make her own. I told her the other night that it came out better than it normally does and she told me, "well, it because I didn't really measure anything". LOL! Yep, shes made it more than a few times!

Dutch Oven Peach Cobbler

2 16 oz cans sliced peaches in syrup or juice

1 pint fresh blueberries

1/2 cup baking mix-we used bisquick

1/3 cup sugar

Ground Cinnamon

Topping:

2 cups baking mix

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, melted (1/2 stick)

1/2 cup milk

Cinnamon Sugar (1/4 cup sugar with 2 teasoons ground cinnamon, mixed well)

Spray a dutch oven with vegetable oil cooking spray

Drain 1 can of peaches. Combine both cans of peaches (one drained, one not), blueberries, baking mix, sugar and a (liberal, cause I love it! )sprinkling of cinnamon.

To make topping: Combine, baking mix, sugar, butter and milk in a mixing bowl. Drop bits of dough all over the top of peach mixture. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min.

We found that the original recipe called for too much baking mix. We cut it down because it came out with too much crust. Now its perfect and this is great with some Blue Bell vanilla bean ice cream!

She baked this in my cast iron dutch oven with a glass lid. And she baked it covered. This is the filling mixture in the cooking sprayed dutch oven.

This is how your topping mixture should look. Not too dough-ey!

I told her she better use a bunch of cinnamon cause thats how this mama like it!!

It turned out beautifully. I'm so proud of the little baker she is becoming!

I love the feeling I get when my kids let me know how much they love the food that I cook and I see the interest in cooking that it stirs up in them. It warms my heart to think of all the memories that we are making.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week ahead.

My girls christmas pictures!

2008-12-11T06:06:00.000-08:00

L to R: Lauren, Jena and Sara

Build a Gingerbread House Party!

2008-12-10T17:37:00.000-08:00

This past weekend my girls decided to invite their friends over and have a Gingerbread House Building Party. We all had so much fun! My husband and I made wassail and made sure everyone had a cup and we just took pictures and laughed so hard our cheeks hurt. Once the kids got started they all became very competetive. The younger girls kinda had partners and they were snapping at each other and it was so funny. Here are some pics. I wish I could show you all of them but I would be here all night downloading! This is the highlights.

Jena and Sara with a few of the decorations! We had tons. We went through about 10 boxes of graham crackers and pounds of candy, frosting and marshmallow cream.

It was fairly neat before they started but by the time they were finished it was everywhere including all over the kids!

Smiling pretty for me! L to R: Ryder, Alissa, Chelsea, Jena, Matt, Astrud and Emily! I just love these kids.

Sara and Jennifer. The college girls.

The finished houses. I thought they turned out great.

I had to show you this one. It was Alissa and Ryders. It is so funny, it looks like a doublewide!!

Red Velvet Cookies

2008-12-08T14:13:00.000-08:00

I am going to share with you all my favorite Christmas cookie. I guess it could be an anytime cookie but it does seem kinda perfect for the holidays. I havent made much lately that is blog worthy but this certainly is. The cream cheese frosting on this cookie really make it. It is also a soft cookie which I love. I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday season and is not getting stressed out!

Love to everyone!

I know my pictures this time are just not good, but this is what you will need.

Combine your sugars and butter, beat then your baking soda and salt, then your egg.

It really starts to get you in the holiday mood when you get to add the food color, I love that part!

After rollling your dough into balls and bake them, this is what they look like. Soft and delicious!

I used a little decorator I got at Target for $2.50. My frosting was a little soft but I just put it in the fridge for a bit and it was great.

RED VELVET COOKIES

2-1oz. squares unsweetened chocolate

1stick butter

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1 tablespoon red food coloring

1/4 cup sour cream

2 cups flour-packed down when you measure

1 cup (a 6-oz package) chocolate chips

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper and then spray them with non stick spray. Unwrap squares of chocolate, break them apart and microwave for about 1 min. Stir them until they are smooth and set aside while you mix up your dough. Combine butter, brown sugar and white sugar together, beat them on med. speed of an electric mixer about 1 min. Add baking soda and salt, resume beating until mixed together. Add egg, mix again. Add food color and mix together another 30 seconds. Shut off mixer and scrape sides of bowl. At low speed, add one cup of flour. When that is mixed in, add sour cream. Scrape sides and add remaining 1 cup of flour. Mix in chocolate chips by hand. Roll into walnut sized balls and bake for 9-10 minutes. Slide parchment paper from cookie sheets onto wire rack and let cool. Place on waxed paper to cool and prepare your frosting.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

1/2 stick butter

4 oz. cream cheese

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups powdered sugar

Soften butter and cream cheese. Mix in vanilla and powdered sugar until smooth and creamy. Spread on your cookies.

I hope you all try it, you will love it!

Spicy Meatballs or Not!!

2008-12-03T06:47:00.001-08:00

Earlier this year my in laws lived with us for a bit while they were transitioning to go stay with my sister in law in Honduras. These people can cook! While they were here, my father in law, Bob, made us these meatballs several times. They are so simple and so quick, yet they taste so delicious. Yesterday, we were trying to figure out what we would have for supper and we are still in the mode of "using things up" since Thanksgiving. There are no weird ingredients and most people have all this stuff on hand. Well, after we made them and we were standing in the kitchen trying them out. Our mouths started burning. We dug through the trash and found that the bread crumbs I bought were ZESTY flavored. They had crushed red peppers in the ingredients. I thought they were great that way since I absolutely love spicy stuff. However, the family decided they were good but better with just regular bread crumbs. This is a pretty self explanatory recipe so I didnt take many pictures. The sauce we used was some that we had put up back in the summer when we had a ton of tomatoes. I used a quart and of course I added some parmesan and a little whipping cream to taste just because I have to. Just something I do, I gotta mess with it. I hope you all like this diversion from "Thanksgiving" food. I was in overload with all the holiday stuff I was cooking!

Put a little of your sauce in the bottom of a 13x9 pan.

After mixing up your meat mixture, make the balls the size of a small fist. Then fry them in about an inch of olive oil.

After browning your meatballs pretty good, place them on top of the sauce.

Put the rest of your sauce over the meatballs and cover with some mozarella and provolone and bake at 350 degrees another 20 minutes or so.

Meatballs

2 lbs. lean ground meat

2 cups bread crumbs, seasoned however you want!!

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 garlic pod, minced

1/2 cup grated parmesan

2 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 eggs.

About of a quart of your favorite Italian marinara

Mix all together and brown in olive oil. Place in a 13x9 pan with some of your sauce in the bottom of the pan. Cover with remaining sauce and 1 cup each of mozarella and provolone and bake about 20 min. in 350 degree oven. Serve with nice salad and garlic bread!!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week and I want to say THANK YOU to everyone who reads and leaves me a comment. You make my heart swell, I love reading them.

Love,

Joan

Odds~N~Ends!

2008-11-29T08:25:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone, I hope that everyone had a very nice holiday! Our Thanksgiving was great. We celebrated with family and friends and had some great food. I am an only child and my mother and father come to my house to have our meal. I made turkey, dressing, broccoli rice casserole, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes and my buttery butterhorns. My mom made, squash, and fruit salad. Oh, and we also had the obligatory cranberry sauce. Now for dessert we just go a little nuts. My daughter made a cream cheese pound cake that was just wonderful! I made pumpkin delight (a casserole type that I have been making for about 10 years). And I made a chocolate pie my husband requested. I am sad to say that is the only recipe I can blog about today. The last few days have been a blur. With all the cooking and preparation I just didn't think. I would love to share all these recipes but I had so many things going at once I just didn't get a chance to grab my camera! We also have a tradition of waking up early and going shopping with our best friends Priscilla and Ron. Yesterday we had alot of fun and just went all day!! We make it fun with a long lunch and a stop at Starbucks for one of their seasonal drinks. Any of you who know me know that I have a love affair with Starbucks. I could sit in there all day and just smell! We had alot of fun. We already look forward to next year. This year we ended the day with a movie. I finally saw Twilight. I have read all the books and the movie was very good. We also found time (before Thanksgiving) to put up our Christmas tree which is my favorite thing to do of all time. It is just magical and we love talking about each ornament and the story behind it. I am going to post a few pictures and then I will show you the best chocolate pie in the world!

Our Christmas Tree. I wish I could show you all the ornaments. It turned out beautiful!

My beautiful daughters, Lauren (in back), Sara, and Jena up front.

My kitchen tree! I am showing you unlit because with the lights on you cant see the "kitcheney" ornaments!

Now.....on to the cooking. Here is the best Chocolate pie ever!

Joans Chocolatey Pie

3 squares unsweetened chocolate
3 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tsp. butter

1 cup sugar

3 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. cornstarch

3 egg yolks

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Deep dish pie shell, baked

Heat 2 cups of milk and chocolate on medium heat until it boils. Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Add egg yolks, vanilla and 1 cup of milk. Once milk-chocolate mixture boils, add other ingredients. Return to a boil and boil 1 minute. Pour into baked pie shell. Cool completely and top with Cool Whip and chocolate chips.

This is the ingredients you will need.

This is your milk and chocolate squares, just bring it on to a boil

Add the rest of the ingredients and cook til thickened.

Pour your filling into an unbaked pie shell.

TaDaaa! All you gotta do now is put your Cool Whip and choc chips or choc shavings and its done!

It is so good!

Easiest, Creamiest Tortilla Soup

2008-11-24T18:23:00.000-08:00

A few years back I went to lunch with a girl that I worked with and I ordered this soup. Although I wasnt officially given the recipe, I went home and made the closest I could get to it. After a few tries I feel like I got pretty close. It is so yummy. It is a great cold night soup. Although it has corn tortillas chopped up in it I still like to have it with jalapeno cornbread! My kids and my husband have given it a thumbs up so I have added it to my recipes that I consider my family favorites. Soon to be a cookbook!

These are the ingredients you will need.

Brown your ground meat with the chopped onions.

Simmer meat, tomatoes, broth, cream of mushroom soup and water.
Add your seasonings at this point as well.

Add your corn, chopped tortillas and cheese, cubed.

This is your delicious soup! I have been told it looks like cheese dip but it doesn't taste like it!

Easiest, Creamiest Tortilla Soup
1 1/4 lb. ground meat
1 can chopped tomatoes, undrained
1 can beef broth
1 can whole kernel corn
1/3 large loaf of Velveeta
1 can cream of mushroom soup
7 corn tortillas chopped into pieces
1 table spoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon pepper
dash of salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic

Brown ground meat with onions, drain. Add beef broth, tomatoe, and 2 cans of water. Add your spices at his point. Simmer about 20 minutes. Add your cream of mushroom, tortillas, and velveeta, chopped into cubes. Simmer just until cheese is melted.
Enjoy!

Awards!! Yoo Hoo!!

2008-11-24T17:55:00.000-08:00

Nicole over at Heart4myhome.blogspot.com sent me not one, but TWO awards and I just love them!! She must somehow know exactly what I love!! I love Marie Antoinette and Butterflies!!
Thank you so much Nicole, I am honored considering just how much I love your blog!!

Take a lookie:

I would like to send these on to:
Priscilla at Priscillas Baking Adventure
Tina at Mommys Kitchen
Kristy at Franceskas Journey Home
Lauren at Just another day being Lauren
Sara at Adventures of a smiling college girl

ALL of you inspire me in ways you will never know!

THIS JUST IN---Giveaway at Priscillas Baking Adventures!!!!

2008-11-20T06:20:00.000-08:00

Please click on over the Priscillas Baking Adventures. She had the most awesome giveaway and I have to say I sure hope I win something!!! Its as simple as leaving a comment for her! Go, Go, Go......

Just a little sweet....

2008-11-19T18:42:00.000-08:00

I am pretty sure that everyone has heard of these. Dont they look like turtles? They are just the easiest little candies in the world! Great for our upcoming holidays. All you do is place a rolo candy (chocolate covered caramel) on top of a pretzel knot, bake at 250 degrees for 4 minutes and then smush a pecan half over the top. Voila!! So easy for when you want just a little sweet....

Easy Sausage Strata renamed "Kirstens Breakfast Casserole"

2008-11-17T07:08:00.000-08:00

My daughter Lauren has a sweet friend that she works with named Kirsten. She turned 21 last week so I made this casserole for Lauren to take to work. I think it would be a great casserole for Christmas morning or Thanksgiving morning because it is one you prepare the night before so it can sit in the fridge overnight. I used regular wheat bread but I think it would be great with day old croissants. I am all about how something smells when it is cooking and this smelled really good. My dream is for my house to smell like Williams-Sonoma. I like to just go in there and smell!! Strange, I know. I recently just bought a small crock pot and I have been putting oranges, lemons, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, a little ginger, and just about any spice I think would smell good with that. I even added some fruit juice. I had a couple packets of spiced cider mix and I threw that in. Ever since I was a little girl I can remember getting great comfort from good smells wether it was clean sheets, fresh mown grass or just my grandmas house. Talk about getting way off track! Back to the recipe. Try it and let me know what you think.

1 pound pork sausage
6 slices bread, cubed (or whatever you want, biscuits may be good too!)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I used sharp and it was good)
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground dry mustard

Brown sausage, drain, and set aside. Layer bread cubes, sausage and cheddar cheese in a lightly greased 7 x 11 inch baking dish. In a bowl, beat together eggs, milk, salt, and mustard. Pour the egg mixture over the bread mixture. Cover this and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight. Remove casserole from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350. Bake for 45-50 minutes until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Spread the bread cubes over the bottom like this.

Layer the sausage and cheese.

Pour the milk mixture over everything and refrigerate.

This is the baked cheesy casserole. Smelled and looked delicious!

"Won Over Coffee Cake" and I am "Won Over"!!!!!

2008-11-13T18:29:00.000-08:00

I know how everyone loves coffee cake (right?). I know I do. I would almost prefer a really good coffee cake over any kind of cake if I have a steaming cup of coffee. I love all kinds, but cinnamon is just the most heavenly smell when its cooking. This coffee cake is no different, as a matter of fact, I think its is probably the best coffee cake I have ever had. Thats a high compliment! This cake is moist, and VERY cinnamoney. Seriously, you have got to try this! I took this recipe from Priscilla at Priscillas Baking Adventure. See her blogsite on the right upper had corner. You must go over and see her blog. Keep this in mind-THIS GIRL IS ONLY 16!!!

"Won Over Coffee Cake"

1 box yellow cake mix (plus ingredients on the back of box)
2 sticks cold, salted butter
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla
Powdered Sugar (for dusting)
Preheat oven to 350. Prepare cake mix in large bowl according to package directions. Spray a 9x13 pan with non stick spray. Pour batte into pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until center is just barely set. While cake is baking, prepare crumb topping. In a large bowl of electric mixer combine butter, flour, cinnamon, sugar and vanilla until all crumbly. (This takes a minute or two). IMMEDIATELY after cake is removed from oven, break crumb topping into marble sized pieces with your fingers, sprinkling it over the top. Put back in oven to bake an additional 15 minutes or so. Let cool fully and dust with powdered sugar using a sieve. Cut into squares and serve.

These are the ingredients only I didn't get the butter out because its supposed to be cold, yea right-I forgot!

This is the topping over the yellow cake, remember, the cake shouldnt be completely baked!

This is the finished cake. It is so delicious. The aroma coming out of my oven was wonderful.

Have a great evening everyone and thanks so much for reading!

Biltmore Estate

2008-11-13T08:10:00.001-08:00

Give Away!!

2008-11-13T07:24:00.000-08:00

Go see Dana at oldredbarnco.blogspot.com. She is giving away quilts. Yea! I love quilts. They are the perfect thing to drape over your legs while eating some of the great comfort food that I post about. Go take a look at her pretty blog.